


Crash and Burn

by nicoleiacross



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Background Relationships, Breaking Up & Making Up, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Gen, M/M, Minor Canonical Character(s), Not Beta Read, Protective Siblings, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-15
Updated: 2016-11-05
Packaged: 2018-08-15 05:11:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 32,682
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8043808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nicoleiacross/pseuds/nicoleiacross
Summary: Corazón should've known better, honestly. Law had no idea. Doflamingo really should have known better. [Modern setting, Donquixote brothers being crime lords, Doflamingo being a protective and good older brother, but still an asshole sometimes]





	1. Painted Grin

**Author's Note:**

> I told myself I was going to update my JoJo fanfics, and instead I wrote another CoraLaw IT IS LIKE A VIRUS. A GLORIOUS VIRUS.  
> These are steadily getting more angsty and I'm so sorry I am a bucket of angst and this is how I cope with real life I'm sorry but I'm also really not. Also I'm Savage Garden trash, ah-hahahaha...ha...sorry not sorry.

_If you need to crash, then crash and burn, you're not alone_ **– Crash and Burn, Savage Garden**

♥

He didn't want things to end like this.

He had plans— _they_ had so many plans. Even though his brother has been warning him for _months_ , he thought... maybe... just this time, maybe—

He swallows the sob when his phone rings—an unfamiliar ring, " _Unknown Caller_ " flashing across the screen, even though he recognises the number—and quickly swipes left to decline the call. A few seconds later, he gets a small beep to inform him of a new message in his answering machine. His face paint smears when he reaches up to rub at his face, mixing tears and rain alike and staining his hands blue and red. He swears and ducks his head, hurriedly pulling his hood up and ducking down an alley, hoping no one sees him. His hands are shaking when he manages to operate his phone to call his brother and he tries to steady his voice as the other line rings, tries to sound not quite so miserable as he feels when his brother answers, "Hey, I just finished, can you—"

" _Why the **fuck** is Law spamming all of my lines!? What did you do!?_ " Doflamingo does not sound amused in the least and Rocinante flinches at the tone, again when his brother snaps orders to someone behind him to get the phones under control.

"Doffy—"

" ** _Answer the damn question, Rocinante._** "

His brother only ever uses his full name when he's _really_ pissed off and Rocinante recoils out of pure instinct, even though his brother is nowhere near him, "I just—Doffy, just send the car. Please, I don't want to stay out much longer." His voice cracks and tries to break with a sob; he quickly bites down on his knuckle to get it under control, swallows hard, and tries again, "I finished the hit. My paint's running, seriously, please send the car."

There's a beat of silence; the only reason he knows that his brother didn't hang up is because he can still hear the phones in the background, can still hear Vergo making annoyed noises and trying to figure out which one Crocodile's calling from, likely.

" _... Roci. What happened?_ " Doflamingo's calmed down. A little bit at least. Enough that he isn't snapping anymore, " _Where are you?_ "

"Bar behind the hotel. Alley corner. Haven't heard any sirens yet. Quick and quiet like always, just waitin' on a pick-up."

" _... All right. I'm sending Monet right now._ "

The line clicks off and Rocinante slides down the wall he's leaning on, curling himself into a ball so his legs are drawn up close to his body, arms linked around them, and head resting against his knees at an angle he can still see his phone. The screen blinks a ' _one new missed call_ ' and ' _one new voice mail_ ' at him, damning him, until he finally swipes the screen. He deletes the missed call and his thumb hovers over the voice mail. He hovers too long and his thumb falls against the screen, opening the mail without him really meaning to and he sits up right at the familiar voice that immediately comes through his speaker.

" _—ing declined my call— **don't put me through to voice mail, you assfuck**! Just—Christ, just tell me what happened! I know you're there, Cora-san, **please** , just—just—I don't know, just let me know you're ok, what did I do, why are you— **fuck—**_ "

The message cuts off with a crash in the background that leads into static and his phone happily informing him that the message has ended. He feels panic and worry swelling up in chest, hoping the younger man hasn't done anything too irrational. He doesn't have long to worry when he hears a car pulling up outside of the alley and looks up, cautiously, to ensure it's the one his brother sent... sure enough, he recognises the faint card suits painted on the doors—dark, colour changing paint that blends in well with the body of the car, that isn't readily visible without the tinted lenses on the shades all the executives wear—and hurries to the passenger door, just to stop short, a chill crawling up his spine. The window rolls down slowly and Vergo nods over his shoulder to the backseat. Monet is, sure enough, driving and gives him a sympathetic look for all of two seconds before her eyes are back on the road.

If Monet is driving while Vergo's shotgun... something hollow plummets to the depths of his stomach and he reluctantly opens the back passenger door; and, sure enough, his brother is sitting in the opposite seat, posture rigid, arms crossed tight, and one leg crossed over the other. Without much choice of alternative, Rocinante slides into the empty seat and pulls the door closed; his brother tosses him a towel (Rocinante promptly makes a startled noise when it hits him in the face) and makes a motion for Monet to drive and car takes off at a leisure pace to keep from drawing attention to them.

The window between the front and back seat goes up and becomes tinted and Rocinante can feel all of his muscles locking up in anticipation for the inevitable arguing that's going to happen as a tangible tension fills the atmosphere. He dries off as best he can; his clothes are soaked through and he ditches his jacket in an attempt to dry his shirt a little; it doesn't do much so he focuses on drying what he can reach of his skin. The towel is soon splotched with his face paint and he grumbles, hoping he managed to get it all off before dropping the soiled towel on top of his jacket. His fingers twitch and knead at his knees, resisting the urge to grab a cigarette by pure will and mild fear of the situation... a moment later, his body goes terrifyingly lax in confusion when his brother suddenly drags him into a one-armed hug.

It's rare for Doflamingo to show any sort of affection, even just ruffling his brother's hair is a once in a blue moon happening, never mind a _hug_ —the sob he's been holding back finally forces its way out when his brother starts petting his hair and trying to run his fingers through the wet locks in some vain attempt to untangle them.

"I warned you, didn't I, Roci?" Doflamingo keeps his voice soft, continues the gentle motions while his younger brother muffles the sobbing on his shoulder, "Y'know how our lives work, bro... we can't stay in one place long... and we can't just take a fancy to someone. Least of all you."

Doflamingo pushes his bangs back—still wet, trying to stick to his face even with the motion—and presses a small kiss to his forehead, "You're probably most unfortunate of the lot, Corazón."

It's always been a long running joke—having Rocinante take on the Heart suit in the family and the namesake so that Vergo could work covert infiltration missions without worry—that Rocinante should have been the first Corazón. That he was easily the most open in the family, the readiest to offer a smile or anything else he could, right along with Baby 5 in that aspect... but only Doflamingo really understood why the joke made his brother pout. Because when Rocinante loved someone, he loved them with everything he had. He wore his heart on his sleeve, figuratively just as much as his literal endless number of heart-themed shirts and accessories. And in a lifestyle like theirs... it made letting Rocinante go anywhere unattended a terrible idea.

What had started out as a few nightly stops to get him an espresso before bed—and he'll never understand why his brother can't sleep without an espresso or _how_ he even sleeps after a triple shot—and turned into morning lattes and tea blends at lunch until Doflamingo was honestly sick of the drinks and just let Rocinante go on his own. And that had been an absolutely _terrible idea_ when he showed up one day, weeks later, intending to just get a slice of cake for Violet and Baby 5 (Violet, as an apology for letting Sugar play with her make up; Baby 5 to hopefully distract her from the fact they'd taken a hit on her latest "fiancé"... again) and he'd found Rocinante sitting at the bar, elbows propped up to support his chin as he carried on a conversation with the young man behind the counter.

They were both pretty fond of Law, Doflamingo knew that much. The kid was more or less a prodigy, getting into the prestigious medical school that he did and maintaining straight A's and a 4.0 GPA while working at the coffee shop. He was a little rough around the edges, personality wise... but most of it was from not getting enough sleep. The two found that Law was actually a lot of fun on weekends he didn't have to worry about classwork or intern work or shifts at the coffee shop. When he slept, he smiled a lot more and could usually be found at one of his friends' garages working on cars or bikes or anything else he could get his hands on. (Doflamingo quickly learned to avoid the garages and made sure Roci knew, too; one of the kids had an older brother he had history with and he was _not_ interested in getting into it with Ace over something so small as bothering Law.) Either way, they both liked the kid and _maybe_ if Doflamingo hadn't let Roci go to the café so often alone... if he'd gone with him, rather. He'd have noticed the looks sooner. The way Law's smile will get just that little bit softer, even when he looks like he got run under a bus and ready to fall asleep at the bar, when he looks at Roci. The way Roci gives a full grin that he usually only shows Doflamingo and a look of adoration that he hasn't seen since well before they inherited the family business. If he'd noticed sooner... he could have intervened sooner. Could have cut off Roci's contact or at least been there to interrupt them when they got a little too close. Before things got too difficult to cut off.

He sighs and rests his head on top of Roci's. His little brother's stopped crying and he's pretty sure he fell asleep, still clutching at Doflamingo's shirt the way he did when they were kids. He lets out a slow breath and finally rolls the window down so he can get Vergo's attention in the front seat, "How soon can we have the planes ready?"

"Buffalo's just waiting on the order to leave, sir." Vergo glances up at him in the rear view mirror, "All of Rocinante's bags were already packed. We had Baby 5 and Dellinger stop by his apartment... he'd already cleaned it out and packed everything. They had to break the door, though. We suspect he changed the locks very recently. Shall we send compensation to the owner?"

"Please do. Tell Baby 5 and Dellinger I said thanks and tell all of the other executives to give Roci and me some space for the flight and a few days after." Doflamingo glances down at where his brother's still asleep on his shoulder and hugs him just a little tighter, "I'll get him back on his feet."

_Hopefully_ , he adds to himself, before pushing the doubt away. Roci's always been able to pick himself up from these messes... but, then again.... Doflamingo's confidence falls, just a sliver, as he puts the window back up to block out the view from the front seat and lets out a deep sigh. All the other messes had ended on the other party's terms. Angry with Roci for keeping secrets and bailing on dates when he had a hit. Law was the only one that _didn't_ break up with Roci—that Roci had to deal with on his own.

He concludes that maybe, just maybe, keeping Roci indoors for a while when they get home is going to be his best bet... and installing a _lot_ of security cameras to keep an eye on him.


	2. Chances

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Law had enough weird adventures in high school; he was hoping university would be just a little bit better. And it was (save Luffy's weird ability to blow things up without trying) until he met the two new weird brothers in town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, in reality, Law's chapter was supposed to be first but I kinda like the impact of having Cora-san's first and then going back to show everything from Law's side? Pile on the fluff to increase the impact of angst. I acknowledge that I am a terrible human sometimes uvu no worries ♥  
> I would also like everyone to acknowledge that this _was not supposed to happen_. It was not supposed to be this long and I may be setting myself up for future crimelord!Donquixote Brothers fics with this and I am not amused with myself for this betrayal.  
>  **18.09.16 edit!!!** fixed a few typos and some weird wordings! Seriously guys, if you spot typos lemme know!
> 
> * * *
> 
> On a side note, some things mentioned in this chapter:  
> Bombón/ Café Bombón is 1:1 ratio of espresso and condensed milk! Sometimes has chocolate. Very delicious coffee 10/10, hyper rec'd  
> Irish Coffee is a 4:2 ratio of coffee-whiskey! Be responsible when drinking!  
> Matcha Green Tea Latte is exactly what it sounds like o/ matcha powder is the healthier version of green tea! I'm told it's good for stress and I can vouch that it's very delicious with almond milk!  
> Masala Coffee is a spiced coffee with cinnamon and cardamom~ I've been told it's a wonderful winter drink~ (cinnamon is not for me so I can't vouch this but it smells _divine_ )  
> ok, think those were the only drinks mentioned so :3 moving on!

_Let me be the one you call, if you jump I'll break your fall_ **– Crash and Burn, Savage Garden**

♥

'Stolen Hearts' is the out of the way, small, diamond in the rough, almost-literally-middle-of-nowhere coffee shop that Law's worked at since he was in high school and lived above for what feels like forever. The name and sign are usually what draw in new customers—being sandwiched between two much larger businesses means most people overlook the coffee shop—but they have their loyal, steady flow of morning, lunch, and closing customers.

Office gentlemen and women, high schoolers, university students, all pouring in as soon as they open, mostly still asleep and mumbling slurred orders that are well known by the staff (Law, two friends he's known since he was still in grade school, and the owners, who have known all of them just as long as friends of their son) so that there are no mistakes, even when the customer can't quite communicate exactly what they want. Surrounding business employees who are sick of their own food wander in during lunch, striking up conversation with whoever happens to be there (usually Penguin or Shachi, since Law has school for most of the day) and sometimes commuters or students who have open canvas and enough time before their next classes. The evening crowd seems to be the most varied—most office people don't stop in on their way home, but a lot of students do, especially when exam weeks come around. Law runs the counter in the afternoons up to closing, usually by himself, though Bepo will sometimes help if his parents aren't around to see him. Growing up around the café, Bepo's just as good with the equipment and orders as the three older boys; and, honestly, the only reason Bepo _isn't_ allowed to work in the cafe is because his mother is worried about him getting distracted... which he has, but Law can usually keep him on track. Either way, Bepo has a much more welcoming personality than Law usually does (having a full day of AnP and Biology classes and workshops isn't easy and, thankfully, regular customers know that Law isn't trying to look so unfriendly; new comers usually stick close to Bepo) and the afternoon shifts go pretty tame, all things considered. They sometimes get interesting customers near closing—people coming from local bars that are hoping for more alcohol—and, thankfully, Bepo's in bed by that time, so Law can generally get away with getting just a little rough with the customers, so long as he doesn't actually fatally wound anyone. The medical classes have been making years of self-defense classes pay off all the more, to say the least.

And _that_... is where he is now. Grumbling just outside the door to Stolen Hearts, trying to dust himself down from a small scuffle and calling back to his boss that everything's fine and she doesn't need to come down to check on him. He sends a glower down the sidewalk after the man limping away and is just getting ready to head back inside when a loud laugh nearly makes him jump out of his skin. He's extremely proud of himself for not screaming and jumps back when he whirls on the noise, tense and ready for another fight. He relaxes, confused, at the sight before him.

A pair of blondes are standing shoulder to shoulder; the one that laughed is wearing a prim black suit, short blonde hair slicked back and a pair of dark red shades resting on the bridge of his nose. In passing, Law wonders if he can actually see, given that it's almost ten pm and no normal (or sane) person would be wearing shades this late. His attention drifts to the man's much quieter partner and he blinks a few times to make sure he's not seeing things. The two look strikingly similar, save a few inches of height, if that (and they are both _ridiculously tall_ ), but the quieter of the two is wearing a white dress shirt with a heart pattern, untucked from the slick black dress pants, and thin, rimless glasses that have a pink tint to them. His hair looks a little bit longer, though it could just be because it isn't slicked back like his companion's (Law assumes they're brothers, but keeps the observation to himself)... either way, his hair is also much fluffier, though Law's pretty sure that's probably from the godawful humidity that's been lingering in town for the past few days. He shakes his head, still tense, and tries to put on a diplomatic smile, "Hi, can I... help you with something?"

He worries, just for a moment, that maybe they saw the fight. Maybe they're cops. Maybe this _is_ another fight waiting to happen and Law is _not_ look forward to that possibility.

The one with slicked back hair is still chuckling and waves him off, idly, "Just passing through, kid. We were lookin' for somewhere to get a late drink. Roci can't sleep without an espresso."

'Roci' shoots the other blonde a glare over the rim of his shades, "Don't blame this on _me_! You wanted a drink, too, Doffy! And I can sleep just fine without an espresso!" He scowls when his protests just result in more laughter; a moment longer and he finally takes his shades off, carefully folding them and placing them in his breast pocket before giving Law an apologetic smile, "Please, excuse my brother... would it be too much trouble to get a pair of drinks? It's kind of late... but you're the only place we've seen open with coffee."

"Oh. Sure?" Law shrugs and makes a sweeping gesture with his arm to invite the two in, "I was just cleaning up for closing. We're still open for a bit, though, so I don't mind making two last cups. Please, come in." He quirks a brow when 'Doffy' puts a hand against his brother's back to guide him in, but doesn't say anything. Instead, he follows them in, closing the door behind him and turning the sign from 'open' to 'closed' just to ward away any other late stragglers. The two blondes are sitting at the bar when he turns around; he can tell Roci looks excited by the menu, though his brother hasn't even glanced at it, in favour of scrolling down his phone. Again, Law keeps all interested commentary to himself and walks around to the serving side of the bar, putting on his best smile for how late it is and how ready he is to just fall over and crash. He hopes he manages to sound polite when he finally asks, "So, what can I get you?"

"Matcha Green Tea Latte for me." Doffy doesn't look up from his phone, a frown etched across his face.

Law's only surprised that he actually saw the menu and makes an affirming hum before he glances to the other brother, "And you?"

"A triple shot espresso, please." Roci's still looking at the menu, even when he says that, and reaches over to tug his brother's arm, "Can we come back in the morning?"

"I am not buying you caffeine first thing in the morning, Roci." Doffy swats at him, absently, "Already made that mistake once; never happening again."

Law listens to their easy banter as he's making their drinks; most of their words filter through his ears as white noise, enough so that he doesn't realise he's suddenly being addressed right away.

"—lost and... oh, we didn't ask for your name. You don't wear name tags here?"

Law finally looks over his shoulder, "What—oh, son of a—!"  He groans when he realises his name tag _is_ missing. He really hopes it's just outside and tries to put on another smile, "Sorry, it must've fallen off, I'm—"

"Law."

His attention immediately snaps to the other brother; Doffy idly holds the tag up between two fingers, waving it around in a taunting manner. He finally looks up from his phone, giving Law a wide grin that sends a sense of dread rushing up his spine, "Lucky I found it instead of your friend from earlier, yeah?"

Law glowers and makes to grab the tag, the man just pulls his hand away, holding it well out of Law's reach, "No thank you? How rude—oi! Roci!"

Roci takes the tag and, after giving his brother a reproving look, hands it back to Law, "Sorry. He's harmless, usually... just likes teasin' a bit too much sometimes. So... Law. Well, you heard my brother, but... my name's Rocinante. Roci's fine, though." He makes an idle gesture towards his brother, "This is my older brother—"

"Donquixote Doflamingo, at your service." Doflamingo's smile is just as predatory as earlier, even when Law hears him add a muttered ' _ungrateful service_ ' under his breath just before Roci reaches over to give him an idle slap over the head.

Law frowns at the two and nods; it's weird for first time customers to introduce themselves... but, tonight's been all sorts of weird, so he doesn't think on it for too long, "Nice to meet you both, I guess... so... can I finish your drinks now, or are you going to keep trying to prank me?" He turns the glower back on Doflamingo, who does his best to look convincingly innocent... Law doesn't bother telling him that it doesn't work and just turns back to his prior task. As soon as his back turns, he hears Rocinante making hushed, harsh accusations at his brother, though he can't make out too many of the words; judging from the fact he doesn't hear Doflamingo respond, he assumes the man's just waving the words off.

He lets out a slow breath when he finishes both drinks a few minutes later and turns to set them on the counter, "There you go. Take your time, I'm just going to finish cleaning up."

He thinks that Rocinante might be protesting that they could've taken the drinks to go; but, he ignores the protests and goes back to his prior task of cleaning the tables around the café. Barely a second after he's turned his back he hears a startled yelp and sudden _thud_ and whirls back around in confusion; honestly, what he sees doesn't answer _any_ of his questions.

Doflamingo is sipping at his latte, trying to hide his smile behind the rim of his cup (it doesn't work, especially since his shoulders are shaking in his attempts not to burst into laughter); Rocinante managed to fall off his bar stool somehow and has a hand to his mouth, mumbling a string of slurred curses under his breath. A moment later and Law realises that Doflamingo finally put his phone down at some point and has Rocinante's espresso in his free hand, which would explain how the beverage _didn't_ end up all over the floor. Instead of thinking on it too long, Law goes over to offer the man a hand up, still confused and a little worried about what he could have _possibly_ missed in the two seconds he'd turned around, "You... ok...?"

He's really not sure what else he could possibly ask in this situation and makes a small grunt of effort when he helps the man stand up. Now that he's right up next to him, he realises that he really is _tall_. (Law himself being just over six foot and he _still_ has to tilt his head up to look at the man... it's more than a little unsettling to say the very least.) Rocinante gives a mild nod, hand still to his mouth; his brows are furrowed, though, and Law can just imagine the expression he's wearing behind the hand, when he finally answers, "Burnt my lips a little, sorry. Don't mind me."

Law just blinks at the man, looks over at the bar (Doflamingo has put the espresso down, and his own drink, and is still biting down his laughter) and then back at Rocinante, "How did that... end in you... on the ground, though...?"

The blonde almost immediately looks sheepish and shuffles in his spot, refusing to answer; he scowls when his brother coughs and Law's attention drifts to back to the bar. Doflamingo coughs again to quell his amusement and grins at Law, "Been a while since I seen Roci so embarrassed, so I'll tell you. He's not the most coordinated person in the world. He trips over himself more times in a day than most people do in a _year_."

Thinking back, Law kind of understands why Doflamingo had his hand against Rocinante's back earlier and nods a bit, "But so long as someone's walking with him or leading him, he's fine?" They both look surprised he noticed and he shrugs a little, "I have a lot of weird friends, so this really isn't all that surprising to me, I guess?"

Doflamingo suddenly looks interested (Law feels a strange sense of foreboding), but the younger brother intervenes before the questions start, "Well, that makes it a _little_ less embarrassing, I guess." He's smiling when Law looks back up at him (a sheepish smile, his lips tinted red from being burnt, with his tongue darting out to try soothing the pain every few seconds; Law makes himself look away to keep from staring), "As much as we'd both love to hear about them, it's probably well past closing. And Doffy and I still have to find our hotel, so... we should really get going."

"Vergo's bringing the car." Doflamingo downs the rest of his drink before he pushes up from his bar stool, "It should be cool enough to drink, so hurry up, Roci. We've got a long day tomorrow and _some of us_ would like to get some beauty sleep."

Law snorts, despite himself, and shakes his head. As Rocinante's finishing his espresso (blowing on it carefully to ensure it really is cool enough for him to drink before he downs it in one go), Law starts to remind the two they have to pay when he notices the small wad of bills on the counter and quirks a brow. He bristles when Doflamingo ruffles his hair as he walks by, "That should be enough to foot the bill. Keep the change, kiddo~ We'll see you around. Let's go, Roci."

All Law can do is stare after them and be quietly amazed when the younger of the two manages to trip just outside the door (Doflamingo sidesteps to avoid getting pulled down with his brother) and waits until they're well down the street to finally close and lock the door. This was probably _the_ weirdest shift he's had in _months_. Instead of thinking too hard on the weird encounter, he turns his attention to finishing his prior tasks as quickly as possible so he can go to bed and not be _too_ tired during his 9am class. If he's lucky, he won't have to deal with this again.

♥

The thing about the days he has later classes (like today where his first class is at nine instead of six) is that Law is obligated to help the owners open shop. So, regardless of the fact he doesn't have class for another three hours, Law is already awake, trying to blink sleep out of his eyes, as he starts setting up various grinds and blends for customers he knows are going to be showing up.

What he _doesn't_ expect, as he's handing his boss a morning latte, is for the bell to ring to "new" customers.

"Good morning, welcome to— _what are you two doing here_!?"

Ok, not the best manners but... Law had a long night. He'd barely looked up and the sudden change in his tone is enough to startle his boss and also earn him a solid thwack over the head in reprimand.

"Manners, Law! You don't speak to customers in such a fashion!"

"But—!"

The laugh that follows reminds Law _exactly_ why he hadn't gotten enough sleep. Yeah, he'd been able to lie down around eleven and, _yeah_ , that was usually enough time for him to sleep... but he'd spent a good two hours worrying about whether or not the two blondes that had shown up at closing really _were_ cops and how he was supposed to explain why he was getting in fights outside of his employment and _God forbid if Bepo's mom found out he was getting in fights again_ —

He quickly shakes the thoughts off and tries to glare at the two. Doflamingo just sends him a toothy grin (predatory and a touch sadistic for the briefest of moments before Law wonders if he imagined it) and Rocinante waves from behind his brother, happily oblivious to the fact his brother looks ready to start goading Law into a fight, "Morning!"

His boss spares him a glance, "Friends of yours, Law?"

For a moment, Law panics. He could just say 'no'; it's not a lie. They aren't his friends, he literally met them like eight hours ago... but if he has to answer, he's a _little_ worried the fight from last night is going to come up and he is _not_ ready for that lecture. Before he can stammer out a reply, Doflamingo waves the question away as nonchalantly as though he were asked about the weather.

"He helped us out last night. Got a bit lost, had a small run in with an equally lost bar-goer. Also saved me a _ton_ of trouble." He throws his arm over his brother's shoulder, "Roci's a _nightmare_ to deal with when he doesn't have an espresso before bed. Stays up all night and interrupts _my_ glamourous beauty sleep."

Rocinante glowers at his brother before turning a smile back on Law, "So we came back for morning coffee and to say thanks again~"

"I don't suppose you serve Irish Coffee at this hour?"

"Doffy!"

The older brother does his best to look innocent when the younger reaches over to hit him. Law just stares at them, feels his eye twitch, and tries to ignore the beginning throbs of a migraine behind his right eye, "Uh. No. We don't sell Irish Coffee _period_. Nothing with alcohol. And what happened to him not having caffeine in the morning?"

Doflamingo pretends to look put off and goes back to looking at the menu; a moment later, he quirks his brow at the same time his brother suddenly looks excited and exclaims, "Doffy, they have _bombón_!"

"So, _bombón_ for you, then? I guess, I'll have... a cinnamon iced coffee sounds good. Also, if you _must_ know: he was being a pest and this was the quickest way to shut him up." Despite the words, there is no hostility in his voice and Rocinante doesn't react past a small scowl; so, Law assumes this is a normal sibling thing for them... even if he  _is_ a little annoyed they showed up.

Law gives a stiff nod before he sets about to make the drinks. He tenses up further when his boss puts a hand on his shoulder, "If you've got this, I'm going to make sure Bepo's ready to leave. You don't mind dropping him off, do you?"

"Sure thing. We can leave soon as I finish the drinks. I can go kill time in the library." He decides not to mention that is purely code for finding somewhere quiet to curl up for a nap before class and waits until he's sure the man's gone upstairs to turn on the two blondes, " _Seriously, what you doing here_."

They're both situated at the bar again, Doflamingo swiping through his phone while Rocinante is taking pictures of the menu. The elder doesn't look up and the younger looks confused, "We said we'd be back? What's the problem?"

"You just lied to my boss, for one! I didn't help you two yesterday so why did you—"

"Didn't you?" Doflamingo gives him a sidelong glance over the rim of his shades, "It's not a lie that we were lost. So I smudged the truth a little about your fight, so what? You _want_ me to tell boss man you were getting in fights on the clock?"

" _No_ , but—" Law makes a frustrated noise and just turns his attention back to the drinks when the brewer preparing the espresso beeps at him.

"Who's Bepo?"

He has no idea why they're trying to make conversation with him. He really wishes they wouldn't. Something about them is rubbing him the wrong way and he can't figure out _what_. Instead of voicing those thoughts, he walks himself through a quick breathing exercise before he answers, hoping he sounds a little polite, "Owner's kid. He's a year younger than me; basically my kid brother."

"You don't go to the same school?"

"He's a senior at Grand Line; I'm in my third semester at New World. I'll be transferring to Four Kings next year, once I finish this semester and one more."

He's not sure why he told them all that; but, a moment later, he feels the tips of his ears heating with embarrassment at the impressed whistle.

"Four Kings is that super posh medical school, right? I heard Viola talking about it with Vergo." Law looks over his shoulder at that, confused by the new names; Rocinante waves it off, "They're two of our friends. They were talking about scouting out a medic hand, since none of us really know any doctors around here. Any recommendations?"

Law slides the _bombón_ towards the blonde and starts on the iced coffee with a small frown, "How new _are_ you? Also, give that a second to set and cool before you repeat last night."

Doflamingo snorts at the dismayed look on his brother's face, "He has a point, Roci. Anyways... we literally just got here the day before yesterday." He shrugs, "Found a place to stay, still looking for... essentials."

Even though Law completely understands how having a preferred hospital on call is essential... there's something about the way he says it, the way Rocinante gives him an unamused sidelong glance, that makes the words just a little more disturbing than they should be. Instead of thinking too long on it, he shakes the feeling off, finishes the iced coffee just as Bepo races down the stairs (and promptly takes a pastry out of the display case before his parents notice), and takes off after his friend when his boss comes back down to tend the counter; his boss can deal with these two and Law leaves money near the register to pay for Bepo's breakfast. As he's leaving, he hears the man striking up conversation with the two blondes and the earlier sense of dread leaves him again. He catches the back of Bepo's jacket before he walks into a busy street and decides that focusing on getting his friend to school without incident is better than focusing on the weird new customers. New customers he has a sinking feeling are going to become regulars.

♥

Sure enough, over the next few weeks, the Donquixote brothers show up every day, right at opening, an hour into lunch, and thirty minutes before closing without fail. Around the middle of the second week, Doflamingo stops showing up, except for the evening run and always orders his Matcha Green Tea Latte. But, Rocinante shows up literally every day and orders a different drink every time, as though he's determined to sample the entire menu, _especially_ when Bepo lets slip that there's a secret menu and writes everything down for the blonde.

Law is slowly getting used to them. He doesn't feel _as_ wary around them... but still not as comfortable with them as Bepo or his parents are. He's a little better around Rocinante and is a little confused by how _everyone_ seems to get along with Doflamingo. Even Penguin and Shachi are getting along decently with them, from what Law can tell the few times he's come back between classes for lunch.

Sometimes, after Doflamingo stops showing up, Rocinante will come with other people. Today is one of those days, when he has a younger girl in his shadow and Law's not sure if he should feel threatened or find her pretty.... Well, no; that's a lie, she's definitely pretty. She's slim, with thick black hair and rimless, light purple-tinted glasses, dressed in what looks like a short maid's uniform. The image is offset rather violently by the cigarette hanging from a corner of her mouth (she's mindful enough to snuff the thing out in the courtesy ashtray by the front door before she comes in). It makes her seem... more rough around the edges. That could, also, be attributed to the holster on her leg that Law kind of has to stare at. (It's not really odd to see a holster in these parts, but there's no gun or knife with it and leaves him wondering if it's just for show. Something tells him it isn't, though.)

As he normally does, Rocinante gives a happy wave, not seeming to realise that his escort has a hand on his arm as a guide, "It's rare for you to be here at lunch, Law! Baby, this is Law—the one Doffy 'n me are always talking about!"

Law feels his eye twitch, but puts on a smile when the woman glances at him, studies him. A moment later, she smiles and gives a small bow that accentuates the maid role she seems to play, "It's nice to meet you finally. Cora-san already said it; but, I'm Baby. Baby 5, but just Baby will do."

Normally, Law might be a little alarmed that someone's name is 'Baby' and that the man _wasn't_ using it as an endearment... instead, he frowns, and focuses on the way Rocinante begins to pout a little at the name, "Cora-san is... you?"

Baby looks confused and Rocinante gives a small, nervous chuckle, "It's a nickname. And a long story. Baby, why don't you go look at the menu? Find something Sugar will like, too."

"Are we buying for Dellinger, as well?" The woman wrinkles her nose and Rocinante laughs a bit more naturally.

"Nah, Doffy can deal with him later. That's why _you_ came with me, instead of Viola. Go on."

Law watches her head to the counter before turning his attention back to the blonde, "Cora-san?"

"It's... well, long story short. Doffy adopted Baby when she was really little." He shrugs a little, an absentminded gesture, "She had a hard time with everyone's names and Doffy made it a lot harder by calling me by a nickname—Corazón. She couldn't say it correctly, and always said 'Cora- _san_ ' instead; my understanding is the 'san' is an honourific of sorts? Doffy explained it to me, but she only attaches it to our names. Anyways, it was easier for her than 'Rocinante' or 'Corazón'... so it just kinda... stuck, I guess. There's more to it than _that_ , but that's the gist of it. She can say my name _now_ , but it's just habit for her to say Cora-san. That and she thinks my name is funny for some reason. Never thought to ask why."

As legitimate as the story sounds—and it makes a lot of sense because Law can hear a distinct accent whenever Baby speaks, like she's still struggling with the words—there's something that sounds... off about it. Specifically,....

"Your brother calls you his heart?"

The man startles for a moment, like he wasn't expecting Law to realise what the word meant, before he laughs, "Right. Med student. I guess it makes sense for you to know various terms in other languages. It's a... well. Not a joke. But it's something between us. Our mom called me that when I was little. Her little heart. It just... kinda stuck with Doffy after she died—ah. Sorry. That's probably not good lunch conversation." Another nervous laugh, even though Law had no intention of interrupting him, "You can forget you heard that, I'm sorry—"

"Is it alright if I call you Cora-san, too?"

He startles and Law gives a small smile and shrug, "You're always wearing hearts. And... I dunno, I kind like the way Cora-san sounds. Is it alright?"

He's given a bright smile and enthusiastic nod as an answer and Law just keeps smiling in return. This brother is _definitely_ easier for Law to deal with.

Cora-san. He tests the name a few times in the back of his mind, amused and intrigued by his discovery, and settles at one of the corner tables—the one where he can survey the entire café—to watch Cora-san a little longer, as the man finally seems to realise he hasn't ordered his drink for lunch. He eventually settles on a masala coffee, looking extremely curious about it. Law wonders if he should warn him that Shachi's a _little_ heavy on the cinnamon... he doesn't, in the long run, just to see how it goes. (Surprisingly enough; the strong cinnamon doesn't seem to do anything to the man. Though that might be because he burns his lips again with the initial sip.)

The weirdest part is that Cora-san sends Baby 5 home on her own (the woman looks ready to protest before he promises he'll just stay at the café) and promptly settles into the seat across from Law. He doesn't strike up any conversation or try to ask questions; it's a curiously comfortable silence, with the two of them just watching other people come and go, until Law announces he has to get back on campus for his last two classes. Cora-san waves after him, "Have a safe trip! See you tomorrow?"

"Nah. See me in a few hours." Law shoulders his backpack and shrugs, "I'm closing tonight."

"Ooh, fun! See you soon, then!"

Law just gives an agreeing nod before heading out at a leisure pace. He still has a little bit of time to kill before his bus shows up, but it never really hurts to be early.

*

Sure enough, when Law gets back a few hours later, Cora-san is still there. He's moved back to the bar to accommodate his legs and is looking at something on his phone with a rather bored expression. Law just blinks and sets his backpack in a corner out of the way, announcing himself idly, "I'm back. Did you want me to take the counter, ma'am?"

Bepo's mother sends him a look over her shoulder, a grateful smile, and shakes her head, "No, thank you, dear. I can handle this until dinner. Did you have any class work?"

"A little bit." Not a lie. Law does most of his work between classes as soon as he gets it; he rarely ever finishes all his daily assignments, but he gets enough of them done that he can breeze through them in an hour or so and spend his weekends on long term projects, "Inventory check?"

"No, no. You just focus on your work until dinner." She makes a shooing motion as more people come in and divert her attention. Not seeing a reason to argue, Law shrugs and gathers his bag to take over his usual table. For some reason, he's not the least bit surprised when Cora-san almost immediately joins him and starts making interested expressions at the books and notebooks that are soon scattered on the table.

"I'm a little surprised you stayed the entire time," Law admits, more than a little confused, "What did you even do all day, it's been like five hours."

"Some work for Doffy." Cora-san shrugs, his attention still on the pile of thick text books. He looks mildly concerned by their size, "Do you actually read all those in a single semester?"

"I read them before the semester started." Law shrugs, "But, yes. We cover most everything in the books. Why?"

"Just... asking. It looks like a lot. Is the print still teeny tiny?"

"... You can look at one of them? I have the one I need over here." Law shakes his head a little and pushes the stack of text books towards the man after ensuring there's no drinks anywhere on the table. The last thing he needs is coffee or water or tea or anything else getting knocked onto his work. He thinks there's going to be a stretch of silence when Cora-san picks up the top book to flip through; but, not a moment later, the blonde is talking again.

"Hey, Law? Why'd you wanna be a doctor?"

As annoyed as Law wants to be (because he should really finish his work before dinner), he just feels confused and looks up from what he's writing, "Why?"

"Yeah. Why? I mean, it's great to know what you want to do and doctors are in high demand," Cora-san's still looking at the book, his head tilted like he's confused by whatever he's looking at, "But isn't it like... a really stressful career? It sounds stressful."

"Because of the books?"

"No, I mean... y'know." There's a momentary lull in the conversation while Cora-san's trying to find what he wants to say, "Because... people don't always... y'know."

It takes a few seconds for Law to figure out what he's talking about; the way Cora-san's started squirming in his seat and put the book he was looking at back on the pile gives him a pretty good idea though. It's enough to remind him of their conversation from earlier and he tilts his head, "... Your mom was sick?"

Cora-san actually startles, like he wasn't expecting Law to have actually remembered what they were talking about earlier (Law feels bad for bringing it up, but that certainly explains a bit)... after a moment he nods and looks back down at the table, "Yeah. Doctors couldn't do anything except... well. They said it was easing her pain. Doffy says it just prolonged the suffering, though. It kept her alive an extra few months but... she never really showed any signs of getting better. I don't remember much about what was going on back then; but, I remember that Doffy got into it with our father a _lot_. It was a mess. I know the doctors were doing everything they could, I understand that _now_ but...."

He shrugs and the conversation goes flat, while Law's trying to think of how to answer. Before he's settled on what he wants to say, he hears his name and looks up. Bepo's mother is waving him over, "I need to go start dinner. I suspect it'll be slow tonight with the forecast the way it is; but, I'd still like you at the bar, dear."

"Yes, ma'am." He doesn't argue and stretches out when he stands. He gives Cora-san a sidelong glance as he does, "How long you plan on staying?"

"Oh... I guess I should get going—"

"What? I'm not kicking you out, I'm being serious. Are you staying to closing?"

"... Could I?"

Law just shrugs and hurries over to the counter before his boss disappears, "Hey, so, he's sticking around a bit. Could you bring an extra plate when you bring mine?"

"Oh? So he _is_ a friend, then?"

"What, no—I mean, kind of— _what did Bepo say_."

The woman just laughs and pats his arm, "Don't fuss now, I'd be happy to bring him a plate. He and his associates always give such generous tips; it shouldn't be too much to give him a meal. Also, I'd be a little more worried about what Penguin and Shachi are saying." She's still laughing when she heads upstairs to the living space above the café and leaves Law wondering what his friends _possibly_ could have said... and also if he _really_ wants to know. Instead of thinking on it (and Law really needs to break the habit of just pushing such troublesome thoughts away, probably), he turns and heads back over to his table. The café is empty, he'll see if anyone comes in, but he should really put his books up if he's going to relocate to the bar. Cora-san's still sitting there, looking more than a little confused and Law gestures back towards the bar, "I kind of have to stay over there. Dinner should be down in about thirty minutes. You can stay over here if you want, but I figure you'd rather have leg room."

Honestly, he isn't really sure how the blonde has been sitting at the table without complaining; his legs are folded to accommodate the constricted space and the position looks more than a little uncomfortable. Cora-san, in that time, looks confused; but, he stands and stretches out (further convincing Law that he wasn't comfortable at the table), heading back to the bar, "I knew the owners were living upstairs... do they normally feed customers, too?"

"I asked her to bring a plate for you when she brings mine." Law shrugs again to show it's no big deal, "She said you guys tip too much, anyways, so don't worry about it. Anyways," He changes the subject before Cora-san can protest and resumes their prior conversation, "You asked a question. I kind of thought of an answer, but... not really something to discuss across the shop or before a meal. So, if you're still interested _after_ dinner... I guess I could tell you. Seems fair enough."

"Fair for what—oh— _oh_ , jeez, no, I didn't mean to—I mean, I don't mind having told you that, but you don't need to tell me if you don't want, I—"

"No, it's cool." Law leans on the bar, looking down at his hands, "Probably about time I told someone, anyhow. Aside from Bepo's parents. I mean, I kind of didn't have a choice but to tell them, since they've been taking care of me for a while now. Seriously, it's fine."

Cora-san still looks doubtful; but, he also looks confused and Law's pretty sure he's only nodding in agreement because he wants the curiosity sated as much as everyone else that finds out Law's been living with Bepo's family for as long as he could remember.

There aren't any customers before dinner is brought down or during their meal. In that time, Law manages to finish up his classwork, now that Cora-san isn't asking him questions every few seconds. He can hear the soft patter of rain starting up and glances towards the door. The streets are completely empty, even though it's barely seven. He sends Cora-san a curious glance, "I assume since it's raining your brother probably isn't showing up today?"

"Hmm? Doffy? Nah, probably not until later." Cora-san shrugs, "He'll probably show up at closing with a car. Dunno who's on driving duty today. Hopefully not Doffy." He wrinkles his nose, "Drives like it's a race. Surprised he's never been pulled over, honestly."

Law snorts a little, shifting to where his body is making a ninety-degree angle with the bar, "For some reason, this doesn't surprise me in the least. So I don't have to worry about him interrupting?" That gets Cora-san's attention pretty fast and blonde focuses completely on Law. Law just drums his fingers on the bar a few times, trying to figure out where he should start. He's been thinking about it for a while, but none of it really sounds like a good starting place, honestly. Or good.

"I guess I should start with why I'm living with Bepo's family... I'm not from around here. Well, neither are they, really. But I owe them a lot for bringing me here and... really, just taking me in. The place I grew up was... not really the best. I mean, I have fond memories of it, but there was a _lot_ of major division among classes. Upper class had their own quarter and everyone else just kind of... was there. Didn't matter if you were below the poverty line or middle class; if you weren't upper class, you were considered poor. My parents were both doctors—two of the only ones in the entire town—but that didn't really mean much. They treated who they could, but the upper class more or less _demanded_ their undivided attention over the smallest things. I remember one time—I was probably seven, give or take—my parents were helping a woman through her labour. All of a sudden, guards kick in our door and demand my father's assistance. They made it sound so urgent that my dad didn't think twice about it after my mom gave him the ok. I helped my mom with the delivery—let me tell you it is _weird_ and kind of disgusting—uh... not the point. Point. So the delivery goes really well but my mom is _exhausted_ after it. Yeah, I did what I could but that was mostly just bringing her stuff. I couldn't help with as much as my dad would've been able to. My dad came back about an hour later and I'd never seen him so mad. He wasn't yelling or nothing, but I just... _knew_ , y'know? Mom did, too, and she had better tact handling dad... I wasn't supposed to be anywhere near the room but I wanted to know what happened so I was just kind of loitering in the hallway outside their room. My dad was summoned because some dumbass in the upper quarters _pricked his finger_ messing with a bouquet of roses that their servants hadn't finished trimming. He thought he was there to treat the servant—apparently he was a mess... dad didn't go into much detail about it—but no. He was there to treat a small prick that wasn't even bleeding because this moron thought his servant was trying to kill him by coating the roses in poison."

Law lets out a slow breath to get himself back together, "So, yeah. Stressful was a good word for this career. But, back on track. My parents couldn't do anything. The nobles might have skimped on their fees a _lot—_ claimed they were being overcharged, even when my mom had to set some woman's arm from a horse riding accident and the lady paid her a check-up fee—but it was still more than most people could pay and more than most folks around us made. They made enough to take care of me and my little sister, to make sure we could eat, and donated what they could to the community. Most of it was covering expenses that other people couldn't afford, especially for basic check-ups.

"I wanted to be able to do that. I wanted to be able to help my parents with what they were doing. To put away enough that we wouldn't _need_ to rely on the upper classes stupid whims."

A smile tries to light up his face, just for a moment at the memory, before Law looks down, realises his knuckles have turned white from wringing his hands, and lets out another slow breath, trying to keep the calming exercise consistent, "Turns out... was just a really stupid kid's wish. People started getting sick left and right. Not upper class, but everyone in physical labour jobs were getting _really_ sick. Their skin started developing splotches that looked like someone threw paint-filled balloons at them. White paint."

Cora-san makes a surprised, horrified noise and Law looks up. The blonde is giving him a wide eye, sympathetic look, "You grew up in _Flevance_?"

"You actually _know_ about Flevance?" It's Law's turn to be surprised. Almost no one knows about the city, let alone what happened there. Even in history classes he's been in since he moved, it was never mentioned. The only people that really know are people who escaped and survived (all upper class), the government that swept the entire event under a rug... and other doctors. Law hates all the doctors that know about Flevance the most. His brows furrow in confusion, "How—?"

"Doffy knows a person who knows a person who knows another person that had family there." Cora-san's looks just as confused as Law feels, "Doffy and I work in a lot of intel gathering situations... and the person wanted answers when they didn't hear from their family but... everything we found said no one but the nobility survived and _they_ all claimed they'd never even _heard_ of Flevance."

"Yeah, about that...."

"... How did you—?"

"I'm stubborn." Law shrugs, tries to play it off with a grin, "I was stubborn and mad as hell about everything. Makes for great motivation to keep your body going. ... All seriousness, though, I don't really know. I managed to get out of Flevance by pure luck and Bepo's family found me—my parents had treated Bepo when he had a fever a few months earlier, so it's not like they were taking in a complete stranger... and they were about the only people that weren't scared to death of me. They probably would've taken me in, even if they hadn't known my parents, honestly. Anyways, his mom at least is from a really nature-friendly place that believes everything can be cured if you figure out what the base strand of disease is. Honestly, I think me surviving probably surprised them more than anything else, too. I know they were really stressed and didn't know how to help me. So, I ran away after a few days. I wasn't thinking about it long term—I mean. I had maybe a few months left... I just didn't want to die _there_. I didn't want to be around Bepo, specifically. He didn't know what was going on and thought I just had a really bad fever that I'd get over. From what I'm told, the local police found me passed out about a week later, on the very border of their territory. I had a horrible fever and spent a good few days hallucinating and just feeling miserable. They concluded I must've found something to eat that countered the virus strands of the disease and made me write down everything I could remember eating, which was pretty easy except for this _one_ fruit. To this day we still aren't sure _what_ I ate. I've tried looking for it. It was a weird fruit; I know that much. It made me sick as Hell for _days_ and I remember thinking how _ironic_ it would be if I died from some weird fruit instead of the disease. It was bitter as nothing else I've ever tasted and just... there's really no describing it.

"But, yeah. So. I got better after that. I still have some scars from where the splotches were on my body," Law reaches up to touch his shoulder; he doesn't move his collar to show the scarring, just rubs the spot in an absent manner, "Then we moved here. Bepo's mom thought I could use a change of scenery—somewhere really far away from Flevance. His dad's from around here, I think, so it just... kind of made sense. They've been taking care of me ever since." Law smiles a little, "They've been great to me and never treated me any different than Bepo. And they're the ones that convinced me to get back on a medical pursuit." He finally looks up and gives Cora-san a much more confident grin than he really feels at the moment, "I know this career's going to be stressful. I know there's going to be times I can't do anything. But if there _is_ something I can do, I want to be able to. I want to be able to do what my parents did for Flevance. Not in that exact situation mind you, I _never_ want to see anything like Flevance happen again. But I want to be able to help people who don't have the same options as the people with money. They don't deserve being turned out and told to just _give up_ because they can't pay for some absurd diagnostic that doesn't even help them."

For a while, the only sound is the rain steadily getting heavier outside. Cora-san still looks sympathetic; Law chooses to ignore the look by looking back down at his hands. Bepo's mother has spent _years_ trying to convince him to open up to someone about what happened back then, trying to convince him he would feel better about it, just a little. Honestly, he doesn't feel much different. He feels a little queasy, the way he always does whenever he thinks about his hometown and what happened; but, otherwise, he still feels the same. It does _kind of_ feel good to have admitted why he wants to be a doctor, at least. A moment after the thought crosses his mind, just as he starts smiling, he lets out a startled swear when he's yanked forward and nearly topples over the bar. The only thing he processes for a few minutes is the immediate warmth that envelopes him and the strangely soothing cologne... _then_ he realises what happened and starts trying to squirm free from the smothering, awkward angled hug, "What the hell!?"

He swears when he nearly falls in his attempts to squirm free and instead goes still, clinging to Cora-san tightly for security. It takes a few seconds longer for him to realise that the man hasn't let him go and he struggles to at least look up, eventually managing to succeed, "Cora-san?"

He's not entirely sure _what_ the man is blubbering about, honestly. He can make out a few words, but most of it is incoherent and Law just rolls his eyes in mild annoyance, "Oi, I didn't tell you that for a pity hug now _let go_."

"It's not _pity_!" Cora-san sniffs and still refuses to let go; if anything, he's hugging Law a lot tighter, "You're going to be a _great_ doctor."

Law feels even more confused now and just lets the blonde continue the hug until he's finally released. Cora-san catches him and sets him upright before he falls over the counter upon being released; confused doesn't even begin to describe what Law's feeling anymore. Cora-san looks like he may have been crying; but, his face is clear other than how red and puffy his eyes look.

"You're... really weird, did you know that?"

Law isn't really sure why _that's_ what he focuses on. Cora-san just gives him a wide smile, "So I've been told. But I meant what I said. You are. I can tell."

As good as the confident praise sounds, Law still rolls his eyes and starts looking for work to busy himself with. They keep talking while Law's moving around the café (Cora-san asks about his family and Law actually feels a bit better getting to talk about them); there aren't any customers until Doflamingo shows up, right on time, at nine-thirty to order his nightly latte and drag his brother home.

This time, when Cora-san waves good-bye, instead of rolling his eyes and ignoring the man like he normally does, Law waves back with a small smile.

♥

Law's fallen into a new routine now that he's between semesters. As much as he loves working in the café, he knows he isn't allowed to work all day; so, he instead begs to have consistent days off—specifically every Friday and Saturday. He didn't really need to beg; he got the days with hardly any fuss and, now that he has two days he's absolutely free, he's finding more things to do than he used to.

Friday he usually spends recuperating from the week by sleeping in as late as possible and then lazing around the café to people watch. Which in turns means hanging out with Cora-san a lot more... and turns into the two going out to do things together more often. Despite it having been almost two months, Cora-san hasn't really gone exploring and still gets spectacularly lost on his own; so, Law's taken to showing him around, which in turn lead to a lot of going to movies and going out to eat.

Cora-san never lets Law pay, even when the younger man is scowling and trying to snatch the bill away from him. It usually ends in Law 'pouting' (he is glaring, he doesn't care what Cora-san says, he _isn't pouting_ ) while Cora-san laughs at him for a few minutes and they find something new to do until eight-ish. Then, they spend the last hour and a half talking at the café until Doflamingo comes to gather his brother.

Saturdays they spend all day out and about. Law gets up at his normal time (five-thirty sharp, ready to help set up for opening, even when he knows he doesn't need to) and as soon as Cora-san and Doflamingo have their morning coffee, Law's showing them around town.

Today, he decides to introduce them to some of his friends. He's been putting it off for a while, but he wants to know that the bike he's been fixing has still been saved from Luffy's horrible ability to break things without thought. ... Also, he's kind of hoping Sabo is there because he kind of needs advice about some weird dreams he's been having lately. ... Lately being since a few days after he and Cora-san had that long talk a few weeks ago about their childhoods. And asking Sabo is easier than asking Ace, because asking Ace means _Luffy will overhear and he will never be able to face the brothers again._ So, he's dressed down in a tank top and jeans—about the same he normally wears (the straps of the tank top are just wide enough to cover the scars from when he was sick on his shoulders and he's careful to keep the ones on his forearms under compression arm bands), but he doesn't mind getting these clothes dirty; he says as much when Cora-san asks where the usual spotted patterns are—ready to end up covered in oil and grease and show off his bike. (He can admit it's not as polished as the one's Ace works on, but he's really proud of himself for fixing this on his own and feels completely entitled to getting to gloat about it for a little bit.)

"Right, so... before we get there I should _probably_ warn you guys about Luffy." He really should've thought of this earlier instead of when they're right outside of Dadan's Workshop. He gestures towards the garage, "Don't get me wrong, Luffy and his brothers are great guys but... they're all a little weird."

"I'm sure they're absolute _delights_ ," Doflamingo croons; he's been waiting for _months_ and pestering Law about these "strange friends" he has since Law mentioned them, "So what's so weird?"

"Luffy can literally blow up anything he touches." Law deadpans and really wishes he were joking. If there was one thing he _hated_ in high school, it was that he had a science credit with Luffy three of the four years; Luffy hadn't taken any science their fourth year and Law is _extremely grateful_... because knowing his friend, he would have found a way to blow something up, even though it was introductory Anatomy  & Physiology and had _nothing_ to do with chemicals or inertia or any other sort of hands-on-experiments-that-could-end-in-fire. He shakes the thoughts off and continues, "Sabo's ok. I've never had problems with him. He's usually keeping the other two in line, but I've heard a _lot_ of rumours about him. Ace on the other hand... he's great with machines and metalwork but I am seriously worried he's going to burn his face off one day. I think Sabo said he's narcoleptic? Honestly, I think he's an insomniac and his body just crashes at random intervals throughout the day. Oh... also, Luffy kind of has a habit of getting in peoples' personal space so don't be too surprised if he— _Jesus-fucking_ —Luffy!"

Law's warning ends with him colliding with Cora-san and sending both of them—all three of them, counting the offender—to the ground, when a familiar form tackles him from behind.

"Traffie! Ace was _just_ asking about you cuz you haven't been here in _weeks_! He's gonna be so mad he missed you, I can't wait to rub it in his face—eh?" Luffy leans around him, finally taking note that he's squished a second person aside from his friend, "Ya bringin' new people 'round, Traffie? Sabo and Ace are out, so's Dadan and gramps, so they probably really shouldn't be here—hey!"

Law finally elbows his friend, none-too-gently and probably a lot harder than he needs to, to knock him off his back and sits up, glowering over his shoulder, " _Personal space, Luffy_."

Luffy grins from where he landed near Doflamingo's leg and laughs; Doflamingo's laughing, too, when he offers Law advice, "If you're going to try preaching 'personal space', Lawsy... you _might_ wanna get off Roci, first."

Confusion levels out to embarrassment when Law thinks about what happened and quickly jumps up from his spot. Cora-san's rubbing his head with a small pout; but, he doesn't look any worse for wear or even remotely bothered that he was knocked over. He accepts the offered hand up without fuss and just brushes Law's apology off with a shrug, "Chill, Law. I'm fine. I've done worse walking down the street by myself."

Law knows that for a fact and is still _amazed_ how many accidents the man can get into just walking around. Still, he feels embarrassment and a just a little bit of disappointment. Cora-san doesn't seem to have minded the position they'd been in at all and—

Law quickly shakes his head to stop _that_ particular train of thought. He came to the garage so he _wouldn't_ have to think about all the weird dreams he's been having lately—wait, didn't Luffy say....

"What do you _mean_ Ace and Sabo aren't here? One of them is _always here, where are they_."

Luffy shrugs and makes an ' _I dunno_ ' noise, "Ace got a text super early this morning from Marco. Sabo went with him, I think? Haven't seen him, so I'm guessing that's where he is. Gramps is out of town for a reunion and Dadan went a few towns over to check out a truck some guy wants to scrap if she thinks Ace can't fix it."

Law is still giving him a suspicious look. Those are all perfectly valid reasons for everyone to be missing (well. Mostly. He really hates when Sabo goes with Ace because that usually means there's going to be a lot of sirens and trouble over the next few days if Ace is getting called in for Whitebeard business.) but he also knows for a fact that they _never_ leave Luffy unattended. Last time that happened, he'd dragged half the scrap metal from the junkyard home for various projects and cluttered the place. So if no one's here, who's...

"Ok, so I think Law needs to calm down a bit." Law suddenly becomes acutely aware of the fact Cora-san's hands are on his shoulders and he tenses up immediately. The blonde acts like he doesn't notice, "Something smells _amazing_. So how about we all have breakfast and get introductions out of the way?"

"Ooh, yeah! Sanji makes the _best_ food—awww! Law, where ya goin? It's gonna be fun!"

Law grabs Cora-san and Doflamingo both by the arms and immediately begins pulling them away (trying to, at any rate) from the garage as soon as Luffy mentions the cook. He glares at his friend, "Is Zoro showing up later?"

"Nah, Zoro's already upstairs." Luffy grins, completely immune to the glare, "Zoro's been here since break started and Ace called Sanji before he left."

Thank the gods Ace is smart enough not to leave Zoro and Luffy unattended in a house full of food and alcohol; but, Law _knows better_. When Sanji and Zoro are around each other, things get violent and, or, awkward _really fast_ and it's just _worse_ when Luffy's there, too. It's a pretty well known fact that the three are in some kind of polyamourous, open-relationship... it's just really unclear what _kind_ of relationship that is, because Zoro and Sanji can go from trying to murder each other to stripping each other in record time, regardless of where they are.

"Yeah, ok, so, I'm _leaving_ before they try to _kill each other_. We'll come back another day. Besides, weren't you just saying that they shouldn't be here if none of your folks are?"

"Oh, yeah. I guess that would be pretty bad if Dadan found out, huh?" Luffy just laughs again and shrugs, "Whatever. I'll tell Ace you stopped by when he gets home!" He waves before he runs inside to investigate a sudden crash and a lot of yelling that Law can only assume is coming from the kitchen.

Law just grumbles and goes back to his failed attempts of dragging the brothers down the street, "I should've seen this coming. I really should've."

"Awww, come on, Lawsy, they sound like _fun_!" Doflamingo isn't budging from his spot. Cora-san isn't either, really; he's looking back at the house in concern.

"Are they going to be ok if we leave them alone?"

"They haven't killed each other yet, so I'm going to go out on a limb and say yes." Law rolls his eyes, "Let's just find something else to do. I'm not going to be able to work on my bike in peace if Zoro's there."

Before he can think up a new method to get Doflamingo to move (his most probable, albeit inane, plan currently being taking the man's glasses and running off with them, even if it probably would end in Law getting his ass kicked), Doflamingo's phone starts ringing. He easily shakes himself free of Law's grip and takes a few steps away to answer the phone, "Doflamingo speaking, go."

Cora-san hums a little and takes a few steps to move around Law before he works his own arm free and starts rubbing his shoulders, "Calm down. I'm sure they're all pleasant enough and you're just overly stressed."

Ok, Cora-san isn't really _wrong_... individually, he gets along great with all three of them. But when they're _together_... he shudders a little and pouts when he leans back into Cora-san without thinking about it, "They're great. Just not together. Them together is this _huge_ bomb of tension waiting to go off. Luffy's pretty good at diffusing it; but, he's never really _interested_ in diffusing it. He'd rather let them fight until things start getting bloody... hey, is your brother ok?"

Law frowns when he glances over; Doflamingo is still talking in hushed, harsh whispers... judging by the way the veins on the back of his hands are starting to bulge when he grips his phone just a little bit harder, he assumes the call is not one of good news. Cora-san seems to think so, too, and quietly tells him to stay put before going over to his brother and smoothing a hand over his shoulder to try getting him to calm down for the call. A minute or so later, Doflamingo shoves his phone back in his pocket with such a force that Law's surprised his jeans don't rip and starts making gestures at Cora-san to explain what happened. For the entire thing, Cora-san is remarkably calm and nods every few seconds, taking in the entire explanation before he speaks. Law isn't sure what they're talking about or what Cora-san says; but, Doflamingo calms down exceptionally as Cora-san's talking and lets out a strained, slow breath to collect himself and gives a begrudging nod of agreement to whatever his brother's said.

Judging from their gestures (a flippant flick of wrist from Cora-san and a mimicked motion from Doflamingo that's just a little sharper to accentuate his annoyance), Law assumes they're parting ways; sure enough, Doflamingo stalks down the street, pulling his phone back out and angrily jabbing in a number as he does. Cora-san joins Law again, a pleasant smile on his face and his hands resting in his pockets in an incredibly relaxed manner for the heated conversation he was just in, "Well then. Guess it's just us today. Some things went bad with a business proposition. Doffy's going to deal with it. Apparently Baby and Sugar got caught in the crossfire. Monet's tending to them, don't worry," He adds, quickly, and Law can only assume he looked worried for a moment, "Vergo's the one that called. This is a pretty important transaction for Doffy so... yeah, he's not happy to say the least. And when Sugar gets involved, he's worse."

Law gives a slow nod, trying to look around Cora-san to look the way Doflamingo went... and is a little confused that he doesn't see the man, even though there's no way he could've reached the end of the street already. Maybe he took a shortcut through an alley...? The brothers _have_ been here a few months now, maybe at least one of them has finally learned to navigate the town. As an afterthought, he looks up, still confused, "Shouldn't you go, too, then?"

"Hmm?"

"If it's an important... business... thing. You two run the business together, right?"

"Technically, yeah. But, Doffy's definitely the one in charge. I'm totally ok with that." Cora-san shrugs to accentuate his point and, with a nervous laugh, adds, "Besides, this is a client that _really_ doesn't like me. Honestly, me showing up would just make things a _lot_ worse. Best if Doffy and Vergo handle it. So," Law can already tell, just from the tone and smile, that the man's deliberately changing the subject, "What should we do today? I know you were looking forward to working on your bike... any secondary plans—what's wrong?"

Cora-san suddenly looks concerned and Law can only imagine the expression he's wearing. He sighs and shrugs, "Honestly, I kind of just wanted to talk to Sabo. I mean, yeah, I wanted to check on my bike and show it off to you two, but I really needed to talk to Sabo. Or Ace. Preferably Sabo. Luffy eavesdrop if you take Ace's attention for too long and Ace would've just told Sabo, _anyways_." He really doesn't have any problem admitting this part. Now, if Cora-san were to ask—

"About? Is it anything I can help with?"

... _That_ is what Law was really hoping he wouldn't ask. Because, honestly, Cora-san probably could help. In fact, he's probably the person Law _should_ be asking... but it's just _awkward_.

"It's... not really something I want to talk about in public." Also not a lie.

"We can talk at my apartment." Cora-san supplies, still trying to be helpful. Law swears internally but he's also curious.

"Wait, I thought you two were—?"

"Well, yeah, we have a house." Cora-san shrugs, "But it's really crowded. You've met a good number of our associates and friends. They all stay in the main house. I have an apartment so I can have quiet time. ... Also because... I mean. You've met Doffy."

Despite how he feels at that moment, Law snorts and quickly tries to hide it by coughing into his hand and looking away. As professional as Doflamingo seems upfront—and it's not a total facade, he really is a very professional individual when certain subjects come up—Law's also learned that he _loves_ the social limelight. He loves to stand out and he loves to display the sheer amount of power he has. Law's turned down a number of invitations to his house parties, but they _always_ end up being the talk of the town for weeks and _always_ make the front page of the newspaper.

"Ok, yeah, that makes sense."

"So...? It's not much, but it'll be better than trying to talk at the main house or the café?"

Law shifts a bit, weighing his options... before he gives in with a slow exhale and nods, "Yeah. Sounds good."

Out of pure habit, Law walks close to Cora-san—close enough that their arms brush—with the excuse that it's to kind of keep the man coordinated.

*

The apartment isn't too far away and... for some reason... it's not really what Law was expecting.

The room is pretty small—one room, one bath, and an open living area connected to a small kitchen—but understandable for a single person. The walls are barren and the furniture all looks like it was bought from a thrift store. There are no personal touches, even in the bedroom (the closet being the obvious exception and the only splurge of colour in the otherwise monotonous gradient of beige in the apartment), and... Law's not sure what he was expecting. But it definitely wasn't this. He imagines he must look disappointed because Cora-san gives a small laugh, "I'm not here often enough to personalise anything. Honestly, I was fine with just the bed; but, Doffy _insisted_ I get a few couches. Kind of glad he did now."

Cora-san falls back onto the couch, stretching out to find a comfortable positon before he pats the free space next to him, "So?"

"Er... I'm good standing." Not a lie; Law thinks clearer when he's standing and has an option to pace when he needs to. Sitting just makes him twitch and feel more nervous than he already is, "So... hypothetically... ...."

Cora-san waits patiently, his head tilting in a curious, leading gesture, "Of course. Hypothetically...?"

"... What would you do if you just kind of... developed feelings for someone?" Law resists the urge to pace by sheer will and making himself hold eye contact so he can feel a little more confident than he really is. Cora-san quirks a brow at him and Law sighs, "It's just. Weird to me? I mean, yeah, I had flings in high school. A few hook ups here and there. It was fun, I guess? Mostly one-time things, friends with benefits, that kind of stuff...."

"But this isn't?" Cora-san offers and smiles a bit when Law gives a glum nod, "I think that's wonderful. Wanting a steady relationship isn't a bad thing at all. So what's the problem?"

"I'm not sure how to bring it up. It kind of sounds like a bad idea, honestly. The people I hooked up with in high school were all acquaintances—I didn't really care if we fucked up being friends. I don't want that to happen this time. If things don't work, I still want to be friends with him."

For a second, the second Law realises his mouth is going faster than his brain, he feels tense. It's pretty common knowledge that he's dated more guys than girls in the past and that he definitely prefers guys... but it's still not something he brings up too often to people that don't already know and he's kind of waiting for the backlash. Instead, Cora-san gives a little hum like he's thinking.

"Makes sense. And you're not sure if he's into guys, too, right? That's why you haven't said anything to him?" Law promptly startles and Cora-san chuckles, "Don't look so surprised. Doffy's definitely more open about his personal life and who he has or is sleeping with, between the two of us; but, that doesn't mean I'm innocent of such things. I've had my share of hook ups in the past. Men, women, I even had the pleasure of going on a few dates with an acquaintance who identified as neither. We still write on occasions." He waves the topic away, "Not important right now, though. We're talking about you."

Law feels his heart hammering in his chest and his mouth suddenly feels remarkably dry. As unexpected as that was, he's kind of... happy right now. Or he would be if he wasn't so stressed over the situation. But, knowing Cora-san _is_ interested in guys makes him feel a little better.

"Right... well. Also wrong. I mean, yeah, that's mostly why I haven't said anything yet, but—"

"He's a newer friend?" Cora-san is scarily good at this and Law nods a little, his brows furrowed in confusion. The blonde just laughs, "Sorry. Doffy tells me I'm too good at gathering information sometimes; but, the truth is, it's pretty easy to connect some dots. You said you've hooked up with friends before and didn't have a problem with anything; but if this is a newer development of feelings, I was assuming he wasn't someone you knew in high school. So, someone you met at New World?"

Law shakes his head, "No. He's not a classmate or anything like that."

Cora-san tilts his head and, for the first time in the conversation, actually looks confused, "Someone we know, then? I could ask around if it is."

"Yeah, but I really don't think it'd do much. Asking around, I mean." Law waits to see if he really is capable fo connecting the dots the way he claims. Cora-san just stares at him for a few, long, silent moments. Law can tell he's working to process the information and trying to decide which answer he really wants to give.

"... Is there something I need to know, Law?"

At the very least, Cora-san hasn't thrown him out yet. Maybe he hasn't reached a conclusion yet and Law is starting to feel like this is a worse and worse idea the longer he stays standing. He really wants to pace around, but that doesn't feel like a good idea. He gives Cora-san a quirked look when the man pats the open spot on the couch again.

"Please sit down before you get lightheaded. Anxiety does that to people and I'd rather you not collapse over there." His smile is still kind, still inviting, still patient, still accepting. Law isn't sure how he manages to get to the couch; but, he does. His legs are shaking violently and as soon as he sits down, he's immediately bouncing his left leg out of nervous habit. Cora-san reaches over to still his leg by putting a hand on his knee and gently pushing down to straighten his leg out and keep his foot flat to the ground; as much as Law appreciates the gesture, he feels every muscle in his body lock up and simultaneously feels a rush that reminds him of an electric surge shoot through every nerve.

Cora-san's smile is curious. He seems a bit detached and uncertain, but continues, "So... maybe you want to tell me about this crush of yours? That sounds like something I need to know."

Normally, Law might be angry. Like he's being teased or played with. He's confident enough that he knows Cora-san wouldn't do that and tries to remember his breathing exercises again, "He's...."

He trails off for a moment and thinks on it. How does one even go about explaining Cora-san? How does one even go about explaining a person to themselves?  After mulling on it a bit, he smiles and shrugs, "He is who he is, I guess. He's kinda weird, but I know a lot of weird people. He's really good at listening and is honestly kind of bad with words, sometimes. He's got a different smile for all sorts of situations and it's... pretty cool, actually." For some reason, that's the part that makes Cora-san look up—doubt replacing the uncertainty—and Law kind of wants to roll his eyes, "He doesn't think much of himself and it's really annoying because he's probably one of the best people I know. And...."

"... And?"

He's already gotten this far. He can regret this later. Maybe. He leans forward a little, before he has too much time to think about what he's doing, and brushes a quick kiss against Cora-san's lips before he sits back and smiles again when blank shock takes over the man's face.

"And I've been waiting to kiss him for a week or so, now. I can mark that off my bucket list, I guess."

"Well, that was certainly a waste of a bucket list spot."

The surprise wears off quicker than Law expects and he just quirks a brow, ready to go on a defensive note if this ends badly; but, Cora-san just looks him in the eye and, after a moment longer of the serious expression, smiles. It's a different smile than Law's used to—it just feels... natural. Not the toothy grin when there's humour in the air; or the grin that looks like Doflamingo's predatory grin; or the weird smile he gets when he's proud of something (the one Law personally finds hilarious because he can be such a _dork_ ). This one just... is. And it radiates with emotion that Law can't even begin to describe when Cora-san leans in closer so their lips are barely centimeters apart.

"Bucket list usually implies you're only doing something once... kind of a shame and a waste if it's only one kiss, isn't it?"

Law shows he agrees by closing the short distance between them for another kiss, less fleeting and more relieved than anything else. He's not really sure where this is going to go in the long run... but he has a good feeling about it. For once, he actually has a really good feeling about the prospect of a relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Never doubt that I will justify Law calling Roci 'Cora-san'. I will find a way. And also throw in a lot of my own personal headcanon for the two and others (case in point: Baby 5 is Japanese. Just. That's that. Doffy adopted her on one of their trips to Japan and she picked her own name. She picked up on multiple languages living with them and never really thought about how weird it sounded when she add an honourific to the brothers' names)
> 
> This is late because Thursday night sucked and left me kind of scatter brained? Also I kind of got distracted looking at coffee menus. And then this got a _lot longer than I intended it to be_. And thinking about writing genderbend CoraLaw. Because I am very weak and very gay and I really like the thought of femslash CoraLaw ok, ok. That might be my next project uvu But I'll be responsible and finish this first. ~~or I'll just cry a lot because I have a lot planned for the next chapter, ah-hahahahaha. embrace the fluff while u can~~
> 
> In other news, there's a One Piece forum board on reddit talking about the possibility of a devil fruit that mimics the properties of White Lead and I am terrified and highly intrigued?
> 
> Oh! An end note I forgot: I know most translation teams for the anime (maybe the manga too?? I haven't read the manga yet I'm a wuss) translate Luffy's nickname for Law as "Tra-guy" which makes sense for what he's saying; but the games and such translate it as "Traffie" and, given that Luffy's known Law a long while here, it kinda made more sense to me to use that translation here;; hopefully that didn't throw the flow off too badly;;;  
> Anyways, I need to go to bed o/ i'ts late again (almost 2pm) and I have work tonight. Lemme know if you spot any typos and reviews are nice if you've the time, friends!


	3. Quality Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, things can be calm and perfect. Those days are the ones to remember and hold on to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am amazed I managed to write this much fluff without murdering anyone, I really am;;;;  
> I DON'T NORMALLY WRITE FLUFF, I AM SO CONFUSED BY ALL OF THIS BUT I?? NEED THEM?? TO BE HAPPY??
> 
> These two are some sort of miracle, I never write this much fluff. I am so confused right now. That might also be because I am sleepy.  
>  **edit 19.10.16** fixed a few typos and a few bits at the end! For some reason, when I put the fic over here, it was a prior draft?? I'm not sure what happened there, but it's been fixed! My apologies friends! It wasn't much, just a small piece missing and a few number errors, so it should read a little smoother now!

It takes more than a few days for everything to really set in. Things easily go back to the way they were—Law working opening and closing shifts and spending all of his downtime talking to Cora-san. Nothing feels too different. He feels a little lighter sometimes, feels a flutter in his chest that he'd always thought was just some stupid, cliché metaphor... but, apparently it's not. Whenever Cora-san gives him a smile (a smile specifically  _for him_  and no one else), he feels light-headed and dizzy and just that little bit happier than he was prior. Even when he gets his books for the upcoming semester (that is still a few weeks away) and starts pulling all-nighters to get ready—reading as much of his text books as he can, starting to figure out what his schedule needs to look like to accommodate intern and workshop hours—and feels like death during his shifts... Cora-san just  _being there_  is enough to make him forget how tired he is for a little while.

Lately, Cora-san's been showing up with a laptop and a small stack of notebooks. As much as he prefers sitting in the center of the bar so he's as close to Law as possible, he's relocated to the end closest to the wall so he can reach the outlet for his charger. Law isn't entirely sure what he's working on; but, he's really good at multitasking whatever he's typing (Law assumes he's looking things up, because he's always writing, jotting down notes and numbers in the notebooks) and still talking to Law. As much as he wants to ask, he just assumes it's for the business he and his brother run... though, now that Law thinks about it, he's not really sure what that is, either. Just that it apparently involves a lot of calculations and gathering information, which Cora-san is  _really_  good at.

It's one of those days, when Law feels like he's been dragged under a bus and his mind feels so fuzzy that he can barely stand up right, his body _demanding_  that he goes to find somewhere cool and dark to lie down and he is  _literally_  staying awake by sheer will and years of practice, that Doflamingo actually shows up. Cora-san's laptop is down at the end of the bar, harmlessly charging, while the blonde is at his usual spot, chatting at Law and looking over things he's scribbled over the course of ten pages, front and back, and transcribing them into much neater writing in a separate notebook. Law stopping mid-sentence, surprised, when he looks up to greet a customer makes Cora-san glance over his shoulder; he looks equally surprised and a bit worried, when the older suddenly drops into a seat at the bar with him. For once, Doflamingo doesn't greet Law with a taunt or try to goad him into a fight; instead, he slumps over the counter, grumbling and cursing, and Cora-san puts a reassuring hand on his back, starting to rub small circles into the closest shoulder and gives Law an apologetic smile that's just a little confused; enough to say he's not entirely sure what's going on, either. Law just crosses his arms and waits, patiently, to see what this kind of mood means for the older brother. (So far, Law's met the "normal" Doflamingo, who is annoying but kind of fun to be around but still really damn annoying; the drunk one, who gets handsy and latches onto anyone and everyone within reach and can generally only be controlled by Cora-san or Vergo; and, the sleep-deprived one, that  _no one should ever be around, period_.)

"I thought you had a meeting today?" Cora-san frowns, his tone holding a slow drawl that's testing his brother's mood, "It didn't go  _that_  badly, did it?"

"Someone didn't look at today's schedule. Meeting ain't 'til this afternoon, bro." Doflamingo snorts and stretches his arms above his head before slumping back over the bar, his arms hanging on the service side. Even Law can tell he looks a lot more tired than he normally does and just a tad bit annoyed. He stifles a yawn behind one hand, while the other makes a beckoning gesture at Law, "Lawsyyy, find me something that's not going to give me a major crash later."

Law rolls his eyes, but nods and turns his attention to going through their new herbal blends. He hasn't known Doflamingo to actually order coffee that isn't iced (unlike Cora-san who has avoided the entire iced coffee menu, despite still trying to test everything on the menu) and he seems to have a higher preference for tea anyways. As he's working, he ends up listening in on the conversation going on behind him.

"Papers almost done, Roci? And did you forget  _you're_  supposed to be there, too?"

"Almost. I just need to double check a few more things before I send them to Vergo... wait. Wait, why am  _I_  going to the meeting?" Cora-san sounds more than a little panicked, " _I'm not going, I refuse_. He doesn't even like me, why am I going?"

"He doesn't like either of us; so, tough shit, bro. You're going. Do still forward those to Vergo, however. Never hurts to have a few copies laminated for everyone else—ah, thanks, Law. What's the poison today?"

"A lovely blend of Hemlock and Monkshood, topped with a frothy cyanide," Law deadpans; Doflamingo just snorts and he finally gives in with a shrug, "Dandelion root. It won't give you any jitters later, but it should be enough to get you through the day. Technically, that isn't on the menu, yet; so, I just charged you for the usual."

"Cool, cool. Oh, hey. Do me another favour. Viola and Baby are a teeny, tiny, just a little bit mad."

Law feels his eye twitch and he gives Cora-san a look begging for help; when Baby's mad, somehow,  _Law_  always ends up being the one that gets yelled at and he still isn't sure why. Cora-san is already giving his brother an unamused glare, seeming to have forgotten his prior distress over whatever meeting he's being dragged to.

"What'd you do  _now_? I know why Baby's mad; but,  _Viola, too_?"

"Sugar got into her makeup! That wasn't my fault! I took my eyes off her for literally two seconds!"

Law grumbles but still goes to find the two's usual preference of cakes, "I  _hate_  you. Wait, so, what happened with Baby, then?"

"Doffy beat up some guy that was hitting on her." He looks over, surprised, just in time to see Cora-san shrugging, "It happens a lot."

"It's true." Doflamingo gives a dramatic sigh, his fingers drumming on the bar as he blows at the steam from his tea, "Baby's a sweet girl; but, she takes a lot of things at face value. So, when someone flirts with her...."

"Ah." Ok, yeah, Law can see that. The first time he hung out with Baby outside the café, he'd made the mistake of complimenting her (it was so _weird_  seeing her outside of her usual uniform, but he really liked her jacket and she did look good in the surprisingly casual ensemble)... he ended up needing Cora-san's help to convince her that he was  _not_  hitting on her and was  _absolutely-not-in-a-million-years interested_ in marrying her. He shakes his head to focus on his task at hand and eventually produces a pair of cakes from the display cabinet, "There we go. A lemon-blackberry cake for Miss Viola, and a strawberry cream roll for Baby."

"You're the best, Lawsy," Doflamingo hums when he pays (Law's gotten used to the outrageous tips and just slides the extra money under the counter where the tip box is hiding) and then suddenly perks up with a wide grin. Law feels a moment of apprehension when he man leans across the counter and suddenly crowds Law's personal space, "So. I'm throwing a party this Saturday—"

"Not going."

"Awww, Roci, you were supposed to have told him already." Doflamingo laughs when he settles back into his seat. Despite still looking as dead beat tired as Law feels, he manages his usual manic grin, "It'll be fun having both of you there!"

Cora-san promptly groans, putting his face in his hands, "Doffy,  _I_ don't even want to go. What makes you think I'd make Law go when you're already  _forcing me to go_."

Law quirks a brow at the two. It's nearly unheard of for Cora-san to be at any of the house parties; as far as Law knows, the younger brother usually makes an obligatory appearance before he ducks out and finds somewhere to hide away. From the sounds of it, that's not an option this time, though....

"Why are you going, then? I thought you hated the parties?"

"I  _do_. Don't get me wrong, the parties are a lot of  _fun_. But the crowds are  _horrible_  and there's always so many reporters, I hardly get any time to myself when they find me!" Cora-san whines and makes exaggerated gestures towards his brother (Doflamingo tries, and fails spectacularly, to look completely innocent of the accusations being thrown at him), " _He_  is making me go. Some of his investors are showing up and they want to see _both of us_."

"Pretty sure they just want to make sure you're still alive." Doflamingo mutters into his cup, nearly choking on the tea when his brother reaches over to jab him in the ribs (none-too-gently; Law is genuinely surprised, as he's  _never_  seen Cora-san actually  _hit_  Doflamingo), "Well it's  _true_. Chill, Roci. No reporters this time. It's all company we know and if Law goes, you two can go be sulky and anti-social together somewhere. Besides: Newgate  _should_  be showing up and it would only be polite for both of us to be there. It was his idea not to invite reporters and I'm cool with—s'wrong, Lawsy?"

Law feels a vague flush of embarrassment for the surprised noise (and for having even considered that going to the party with Cora-san would make it bearable) and quickly shakes his head, "Nothing, just. When you said Newgate...."

"Edward Newgate," Cora-san fills in, helpfully and looks equally confused by Law's sudden apprehension, "We've known him for a while. Well... sort of. Mutually beneficial partnerships don't always mean the CEOs meet each other face-to-face. This is actually only our second time meeting him... well... first, technically. The first time, he sent a few representatives. Uhh... I remember Marco... the other guy was... Teach, right?"

"Teach went rogue  _months_  ago. If he sends a replacement this time, it's probably going to be Ace, one of Luffy's older brothers, and he is  _not_ going to be the least bit happy about it." Law is kind of wishing he weren't working, now. Because he does not want to be having this conversation, especially when he sees both brothers sit up just a little straighter, clearly surprised by the news. He sighs, "Listen, I know Newgate is a really great guy... he's done a lot to help around here, even if the local government offices don't like him much. I know he has a lot of legit businesses, but everyone also knows he's got a lot of underground work too. A lot his partnerships end up causing a  _lot_  of problems to people who have  _nothing_  to do with any of it. There was a  _huge_  mess last year over his last attempt to branch out—"

"—We heard," Doflamingo assures him, though he doesn't look too amused anymore, "That's one of the reasons we're even having this dinner. I _didn't_  know about Teach, however. How the Hell did that slip under the radar?"

"He's still listed on Newgate's active payroll, though." Cora-san is chewing on his lip, going through all of his notebooks and glancing down the bar at his laptop (wondering if he should go grab it to double check what he's saying) like he's trying to figure out if,  _where_  he made a mistake, "Vergo or I should have—"

"It's not public knowledge, yet." Law might feel a little bad bringing any of this up, since it's obviously stressing Cora-san out; but, he just shrugs and tries to elaborate with the little bit he does know, "Look, the only reason  _I_  even know is because I know Luffy and I hang out at his place sometimes. Ace has been tracking Teach down since he left. That time I took you guys to meet them and everyone was out? That's where Ace was. Ace is never on Newgate property—he  _never_ gets called in unless shit's gone to Hell and back. He got called in  _because_  Teach up and vanished after killing one of Newgate's sons. Thatch, I think? I've heard Ace mention him before, but I've never met him. Anyways, Sabo went because he's good at finding people. I was working in the garage when they got back, so I kind of overheard them telling Luffy what was going on. They came home for maybe an hour, packed up, talked to Luffy a bit, and up and left after they made sure Sanji and Zoro knew to keep him out of trouble. They've been working on this nonstop since then. The only reason Teach is even still listed as an active is because Newgate makes his payroll public knowledge to give the local authorities a sense of tranquility."

"I guess that makes sense," Cora-san still looks uncomfortable, "if someone was suddenly listed as rogue or terminated on his payroll... Thatch is still listed, too. No one's been removed, but if they had... authorities would be all over it in a heartbeat. Never mind if the public found out. _Especially_  if it's Teach." Cora-san suddenly frowns and Law can see how tense he is when he throws his brother a worried side glance, "Doffy...."

"Aye," At first glance, Doflamingo looks bored; like he expected all of this and is waiting for something new to catch his attention. But, Law's known him long enough to know he's  _seething_ , just from the way his fingers have started drumming on the bar again, much harder this time, "Looks like we're setting up a big ol' trap, doesn't it. Guess that explains why Newgate said he didn't want reporters around... thought it was because of his health, but I guess it could be both reasons. ... Either way. If Newgate  _is_  planning to show up to try settling this mess with his  _brat_... I do wish he'd have given us a heads up. Hmm... well, Roci. Looks like you get to duck out after all." He says it with a grin, but he still doesn't sound too happy with the situation, "I'm not going to have Sugar or Baby on the property if this goes downhill. They're both still recovering from that mess a few weeks ago. We'll all show up for obligatory and courtesy social etiquette. But, I want you to let those two stay at your place until we see how this blows over." He turns the grin on Law next and Law feels a shiver run up his spine, "Thanks for the heads up, Lawsy. I'll need to make sure this party is  _all sorts_  of fun, now. And I've got  _plenty_  of ideas." Law feels like he should really be used to when Doflamingo gets like this... but, that really doesn't make it any less terrifying. Honestly, knowing that he's managed to survive being in a partnership with Newgate's group, that just makes it all the more terrifying.

Doflamingo stretches out when he stands and takes the bag with the cake slices in it, "I'd best get these to the ladies. Oh, and, Roci? Do  _not_  forget the meeting. Jora's on driving duty today, so  _try_  to be mindful of the time. I'll see you in a few hours."

Cora-san looks more than a little put-off by who's picking him up (Law's only met Jora once and it was, to say the very least, an experience. One he'd like not to relive) but still nods and slumps over the counter as soon as his brother leaves, "Well... I got out of the party, at least."

Law reaches over to pet his hair (it's a small gesture; but, it's one that he's learned Cora-san really likes) and smiles a little when the man gives a small whine and leans into his hand, "Sorry about that... but, yeah. I'm glad you got out of it. Especially if Newgate  _is_  using this party as bait to lure Teach out."

Cora-san sighs, "Don't apologise. This warning is a good thing. It means Doffy and Vergo can prepare for a worst-case scenario. Hopefully it  _is_ Newgate. I'd hate for one of your friend's brothers... or. I guess both of them? You said they were working together, right?"

"I'd be more worried about the property damage, honestly." Law just smiles and continues fluffing at Cora-san's hair, "Ace and Sabo can handle themselves... but, the last time they got involved in a fight it... didn't end well for the block they were on."

Cora-san just gives a small laugh before he finally sits back up. He catches Law's hand and laces their fingers together to keep him from pulling his hand free... not that he  _would_ ; the store is empty and he knows it will be until the lunch hour starts, save maybe a few stragglers.

"So... when does your shift finish?"

"In an hour and a bit. Shachi's working the lunch rush today and then I'll be back for closing. I have to run on campus for a few minutes later, but I can do that whenever. Why?" Normally, Cora-san only asks when he has somewhere in mind he wants to go... and Law is  _totally_  ok with going out with him, but... "Shouldn't you be finishing whatever Doffy was talking about?"

"I can easily finish that in an hour," The blonde smiles, still holding Law's hand and running his thumb over the ink on the back of his fingers like he always does, "I've been trying to think up a reason to get some more stuff for my apartment. And if I'm going to have the girls over, that's kind of a great excuse. So, you should absolutely come shopping with me."

"And because you'd get lost if I didn't?"

"I would not get lost! ... But yes, please, ensure that doesn't happen, as well."

Law just laughs and leans across the bar for a quick kiss, "Sounds fun. Now go finish whatever you were doing earlier." He finally works his hand free just before the bell on the front door sounds for new customers and puts on the best smile he can manage... which, given the blonde that's relocated to the end of the bar, isn't all that hard at all.

*

Shachi shows up early for his shift and announces that Penguin should be back in town in a few days; but, Law doesn't hear him and is already heading out the door, calling that he'll be back later over his shoulder. He does, however, hear the amused chuckles coming from the counter; Cora-san catches his shoulder before he can turn to find something to throw at his friend and leads him out. Cora-san makes sure to text his brother when they head out to go shopping, which in turn leads to Doflamingo calling him and Law just stands back and listens. He can hear a few things from Doflamingo; but, for the most part, it's just entertaining listening to Cora-san's answers that make absolutely zero sense without the context from his brother; specifically, when he adamantly refuses to turn the living area of his apartment into a princess castle for Sugar. He finally hangs up a few minutes later with an exasperated ' _yeah, yeah, later, just tell Jora to pick me up from my apartment_ ', stashes his phone in the messenger bag with his laptop and notebooks, and immediately seeks Law's hand out to hold, like it's the most natural thing in the world, "All right. So... stuff for the girls to sleep comfortably and not destroy my poor apartment and stuff for us. Good plan?"

"I don't think that really counts as a plan, but it's a start." Law rolls his eyes and walks a little closer, "Do we really  _need_  stuff for us, though? I like your apartment. I mean, yeah, it could use some colour but we don't need to renovate the whole thing?"

"You were literally just complaining about the pillows and blankets not three days ago."

"Which ended in me sleeping on you and not complaining anymore." Law points out, but he does still kind of agree. The bed is custom-made to accommodate Cora-san's height and frame and the mattress is ridiculously comfortable... but the blankets were way too thin and there were only two very soft body pillows layered together to make a singular fluffy pillow at the head of the bed. Law kind of understands because Cora-san has a ridiculously high body temperature, even when he's asleep, so Law had kind of forgotten the blankets all together once he'd curled up on the man... but, Law's also used to a ridiculous amount of fluff on the bed. Mostly from sharing a room with Bepo when they were kids, because Bepo couldn't get through the night without at  _least_  ten pillows and fluffy throws around him, even if he did just cling to Law and ignore all the pillows that were supposedly there for him to cling to so he wouldn't roll off the bed. Law can vouch the validity of this worry: when they finally started sleeping in separate rooms when Law started middle school, he'd gone in to wake Bepo up and found the younger boy halfway under his bed, face first in the perimeter of pillows his mother keeps around the bed. Law never questioned the ridiculous amount of pillows again and never bothered being annoyed when Bepo ended up in his bed and brought as many pillows as he could carry. Thankfully, he's outgrown that habit, otherwise Law would feel  _really bad_  about the number of times he's ended up crashing at Cora-san's apartment lately.

He shakes his head to discard the thoughts and glances up at Cora-san, "Where even would we find blankets for your bed? Kind of not a standard size."

Cora-san shrugs in response, "Doesn't have to be just one set. You have like six comforters piled on your bed, right? Same concept. Just there to take up space and fluff the bed a bit more, I don't sleep under blankets and you apparently don't need to, either. Also pillows. I didn't even notice how much mine had deflated until you said something, so we need new pillows, too."

Normally, Law might be a little surprised that someone actually remembered him mentioning that. He doesn't remember what they were talking about that lead to the conversation, but he knows he's mentioned Bepo's near unhealthy habit of collecting blankets and how a lot of them have ended up staying in Law's room from when Bepo doesn't want to sleep alone for one reason or another (usually nightmares, sometimes he's just stressed and sleeping near Law is a surefire way to calm him down) and Cora-san remembers the conversation. But, when he considers it, he really isn't surprised. As uncoordinated as the man can be, he always pays attention when Law's talking and remembers the smallest details that Law doesn't normally expect people to pay mind to and Law himself doesn't even notice sometimes. Like the fact he doesn't like foam or whipped cream on his coffee, unless it's a dessert coffee. And dessert coffees are only when Law's had a bad day or he's being exceptionally grumpy. Which reminds him....

"Hey, you don't have any kind of coffee machine at your place right?" Cora-san shakes his head no. "We should get one." Cora-san promptly frowns and looks confused and just a little put off; Law gives a small laugh, "I'm not saying you should stop coming by the café. But if I end up at your place when this semester starts, I  _need_  coffee to get through the night sometimes. Besides, I like when you make coffee. The peppermint one you made last time was great... Bepo's mom said she'd love to have it on the seasonal menu if you were willing to show her how to make it. ... I told her no, by the way, so don't."

"Oh? Why?"

"I don't share well. I don't want it on the menu, but you should definitely make it again. Bepo liked the pumpkin spice and s'mores. I've never seen him sleep after drinking coffee, so that was a definite plus."

Cora-san laughs and nods, "Next time I don't have to worry about Doffy and you're free, I'll show you how to make them for the others. See? We're finding plenty to buy for us~"

Law tries to scowl at him; but, he feels his cheeks starting to heat up and makes a point to look away like he's ignoring the man, "We're  _supposed_ to be shopping for Sugar and Baby. ... What even do they like? I know Sugar likes stuffed animals and toys but... what was that about a princess castle? What about Baby?"

"Huh... I guess you've never been to the main house, have you." Law finally looks back up at him, confused; Cora-san has his head tilted, like he's trying to recall something, "I've never invited you to the house... usually because of Doffy's parties taking up the weekends. We should fix that."

"... What did that have to do with Sugar and Baby?"

Cora-san gives him the same adoring smile he always does and Law tries to ignore the way his chest feels lighter to focus on the answer, "If you'd seen Sugar's room you would understand. Doffy spoils her senseless. Baby's a little easier to shop for. She'll never admit to wanting anything, but I do want her to be comfortable. I'll probably let them sleep on the bed and I'll just camp out in the living area." He works his hand free from Law's to reach up and fluff at his hair, gently massaging his scalp when he does, "I'm really sorry, too. I know we had plans for Saturday night and Sunday. But, just in case this dinner does go south, I'm probably going to be at the house for a few days trying to clean things up. I'll find a way to make it up to you, ok?"

Law leans into the hand in his hair with a small, content sigh, "S'cool. I kind of figured as much. Though, how were you planning to make Saturday work if you had to be at the party?"

"I am  _very_  good at sneaking out. Even when Doffy makes me attend parties, I can usually get out after two hours or so. Sometimes sooner, depending on the company." Cora-san gives a small laugh, though it sounds nervous, "Of course, that was before I knew Mr. Newgate would be attending this dinner. At least I didn't end up needing to text you halfway through dinner to beg for forgiveness and help?"

Law ends up laughing and just leans on the taller man's arm, "If this shit weren't going on with Luffy's brothers, I'd have gone with you. Also, word of advice: _Don't_ call him 'Mr. Newgate' unless you want to get punched. He's super chill."

"Why do you—wait, really? You'd go with me? So... next time, then?" Cora-san sounds pleasantly surprised and hopeful; so much so that Law smiles when he nods.

"Yeah. Next time."

Even if this party does blow up, they both know there's going to be a next time.

♥

Two hours later, Law is making notes to never go shopping with Cora-san again.

It hadn't been terrible—on the contrary, they'd had plenty of fun and Law had run into some of his other friends that he  _didn't_  mind introducing Cora-san to (Bartolomeo, Rebecca, Wanda, Drake, Coby... ok, more like acquaintances he knew through friends, but still. People he knew from school or just people that showed up for coffee almost more than Cora-san did) and a handful that he was suspicious of... Robin and Nami, specifically, at the grocery store. Who proceeded to invite them to a "small get together" with some of the other kids they'd graduated with; despite Cora-san trying to encourage him to go socialise, Law quickly declined when he heard who all had been invited.

That hadn't been horrible. It had actually been kind of fun watching and helping Cora-san pick out snacks for Sugar and decide on groceries incase the girls stayed a few days longer than planned. (Most of it was non-perishable and easy to make; Law hasn't actually known Cora-san to attempt cooking, but he has the vaguest feeling it would probably not end well if it were too extravagant.) It was when they went towards the domestic side of the store that Law  _really_  started questioning how good of an idea this was. It was easy enough to shop for the girls; Law hasn't actually seen so many pink and pastel coloured blankets and pillows since he lived in Flevance and Baby was fond of maroon and purples. As he watches the pile of blankets and toys and books and pillows grow, he finally looks up at Cora-san, "So... what exactly was the plan on getting all this to your apartment?"

He will admit he is just as guilty as Cora-san, in terms of not paying too much attention to what all went in the cart. A good number of the pillows and blankets—all soft, all with spotted patterns or hearts—are things that caught Law's eye for them, not the girls. And the coffee machine. And the various coffee blends. A few pairs of new jeans for Law that he's still trying to figure out how to sneak out of the cart before Cora-san tries to pay for them, as he's so keen on doing. Regardless, the point is, they have a lot more than Law was expecting when he agreed to this.

Cora-san, however, doesn't look the least bit phased and waves him off with a smile, "I can handle it."

"Shouldn't you call someone for a ride?"

"You  _want_  to be in the car with Jora?" Law blanches for the briefest of moments before he quickly shakes his head and Cora-san laughs, "Then just trust me, yeah?"

So, Law lets it go and goes back to trying to get his clothes out of the cart. Cora-san swats his hands away each time and makes a point to ensure he can't grab them off the register belt when they finally go up to pay. Despite a lot of muttered, empty threats on Law's part, Cora-san just smiles at the cashier and assures the woman they don't need any help out and that everything is fine, even when she's giving them worried, wary looks. Law's still grumbling when they get to the door and nearly walks into Cora-san's back when the man stops; luckily, he manages to stop himself and just looks up, confused.

"Now the fun part~"

"... I would not call this fun in any sense of the word. Seriously, how do you plan on us getting all of this back to your place? I know the apartment's only like a fifteen-minute walk from here and thank the gods you are on the first floor, but... how?"

"How much can you carry?"

Law saw this coming. He did, because there was no other plausible explanation. He knew Cora-san wouldn't call a cab (which would've been the smart thing to do, even though he really can't imagine that the man would enjoy being in a cramped car); he already said he wasn't going to call his brother or Jora or anyone else for a ride in one of the luxury cars that make everyone stop and stare (and oh the number of times Law's had to hide an embarrassed expression because one or both Donquixote brothers showed up to pick him up from somewhere); so, the only plausible explanation was that they were actually going to carry all of this. Law knows he can carry a good deal of it but that's still a lot of bulky items and he's suddenly not looking forward to this... but, he sighs and holds his arms out.

"I'll tell you when I can't hold anymore."

Cora-san just nods and starts slipping bag handles around the outstretched arms; as he does, Law is suddenly very thankful he talked the man into getting re-usable bags, because he cannot imagine walking fifteen minutes with plastic bags hanging from his arms. Law manages to get most of the bags on his arms before he finally winces and Cora-san stops and gives him that  _look_. The one that says he's not amused with whatever's going on (in this case, Law trying to carry more than he really can); but, he doesn't say anything and easily loops the last three bags on one arm (the coffee machine is in one bag, the other two are full of food items that should probably be heavy, but he doesn't react to the weight at all) and holds his keyring out to Law, "Hold for a second?"

Confused, Law complies and hooks the keyring around one finger. There's no way he's going to be able to get the door open, he's not even sure which key  _opens_  the apartment door and that's  _still fifteen—_ oh. He can only watch in what he assumes is amazement as the man starts arranging the bulkier bags on his arm: the three large bags of pillows, then the blankets, before he finally stacks the two comforters on his shoulder and still manages to raise his arm to put a hand on top of the comforters to keep them there. He smiles like his arm isn't horrendously over-encumbered and uses his free hand to take his keys back, "You sure you don't want me to take any of your bags?" Law gives him a pointed glower and the man just laughs, "Come on. I know I make this look easy but let's not test our luck, yeah?"

Honestly the most amazing part of the entire venture, Law later realises, is that they somehow managed to get back to the apartment, get everything set down on the floor (with Law groaning as blood rushed back to his arms and Cora-san whining that his shoulder was stiff and his arm felt like jello), and safely secured Cora-san's messenger bag with his laptop on the counter, before Cora-san has one of us miraculous accidents. And, honestly, Law's not entirely sure what happened; but, one second he's organising the snacks and food into the pantry and the next he hears a startled swear and looks over to see the man tangled up in one of their many blankets, trying to free his leg of a bag caught around his ankle.

Law might feel bad for laughing... but, he does eventually help him free and back to his feet (still laughing) and gathers all of the blankets into his arms, carrying them back to the bedroom to be sorted through later. When he gets back to the living area, Cora-san's sitting on the floor again, clinging to one of the many pillows they'd bought and grumbling to himself; Law rolls his eyes a little, shakes his head in an endeared manner, and goes over to wrap the older man up in a hug, pressing a kiss to his cheek, "Y'know. Throwing a tantrum at a bag isn't going to make it apologise for tripping you."

Cora-san just sticks his tongue out (takes the opportunity to kiss Law, which does seem to help him calm down just a little) and squeezes the pillow he's taken hostage even tighter, "Well, that's certainly part of it...."

 _Ah_. Law moves around to sit in front of him, securing one of the pillows for himself as well (soft, heart-shaped, spotted, easily big enough to cover Law's torso and almost difficult to wrap his arms around. Which obviously makes it the best pillow they have, hands down, and Law has a feeling he's going to need to hide this one from Sugar, otherwise he'll never see it again), and makes a curious noise, "Doffy text you?"

"He's sending Jora earlier—like, ten minutes from now earlier." Cora-san grumbles, face-planting in his pillow, "I get  _why_. He wants to run the executives through how tonight's going to go, on top of everything else that was going to be brought up. He has a client coming later—that's the meeting I thought I wasn't supposed to be in."

"With the guy that doesn't like you." Law supplies to show he was kind of listening earlier. There's a pause—like Cora-san doesn't want to elaborate—before Law adds, out of sheer curiosity, "Does this have anything to do with what happened to Baby and Sugar a few weeks ago?"

His response is a glum nod; it says a lot that the man doesn't startle and Law actually frowns, "Are you going to be ok going to this thing? You said you didn't go with Doffy that time because whoever really hated you. And he's going to be at this meeting you're supposed to be at?"

"He's not stupid enough to start shit with Doffy on  _his_ turf. Out on the streets? Out in neutral areas?  _That's_  fair game. But you do  _not_  start  _anything_ when Doffy's in his element... especially if it's his property where he probably has  _hundreds_ of counter measures ready. They aren't that stupid, thank the gods." Cora-san sighs, his knees drawn up so his head is against them, the pillow still clutched to his body/, "Of course, that doesn't mean there isn't hostility. Doffy's already in a bad mood and I don't see this meeting going well. We don't...  _need_ to make this investment. Honestly, we could probably cut ties here and salvage our losses pretty easy...."

"... But?"

"Pride is a  _bitch_."

Despite how grim the entire situation sounds, despite the palpable apprehension in the room, Cora-san gives him a wide grin that says he's no better than his brother. They're both too proud to back down and, even in the given situation, they're going to come out on top. Law kind of has to laugh and nods in agreement, "Sounds to me like you've got this just fine." He smiles and leans forward to crawl the short distance between them, giving the blonde a reassuring kiss just for good measure, "Lemme know how it goes, ok?"

"Always do." Cora-san doesn't try to move away, even when he hears an impatient knock on his door. He just continues to grin—less pride, more affectionate—and gently pulls Law into another kiss to keep him from moving too far back; Law rolls his eyes but doesn't make any active attempts to argue.

"Don't you need to go?"

Another kiss.

"Probably."

And another. He feels Cora-san's fingers in his hair and gives a small purr of approval before his thoughts catch up and he sighs.

"You should really get going, then?"

Another.

"Don't want to."

The fingers in his hair curl and tug gently and Law really doesn't want to encourage the man leaving. But,  _one of them_  has to be the responsible one... even if Law  _really doesn't want them to._

"Cora-san...."

"Mmm?"

"Your brother's in a bad mood, remember? Come on. We'll have plenty of time for this later." Law finally reaches up to pry the fingers in his hair loose; Cora-san releases him without much effort, but is still pouting when Law looks at him again. The younger man rolls his eyes, "Don't give me that look. I know we can't do anything tonight and probably not tomorrow; but, as soon as everything settles back down, we can catch up on all of this, right?"

"I  _guess_  you have a point." Cora-san still sighs when he finally convinces himself to stand and stretches out. Law just watches him from the ground, quietly admiring the way his shirt lifts when he stretches and gives Law a  _very_  pleasant view of his abs. If the blonde notices, he doesn't say anything and merely holds a hand down to help Law up, "I was serious though. I swear I'll find a way to make this up to you."

Law waves him off, "I told you not to worry about it. Being an adult sucks, I get it. Just text me when you get the chance so I know it went ok?"

Cora-san gives an immediate, agreeing nod and, before he can lean down for another kiss, flinches at the much sharper knocking on his door this time and raises his voice a little, "Sorry, Jora! I'll be out in a minute, you can head back to the car!"

They can both hear the woman muttering; Cora-san waits until it fades to give Law a thin smile, "Ok. Think I've annoyed Jora enough for one day... oh. You were heading to New World's campus right? Do you want a ride?"

Law rolls his eyes again, pushing Cora-san towards the door, "I am not getting in the car with Jora. I'm perfectly fine taking the bus, now stop stalling and  _go_. Don't forget your keys. Did you need your laptop?"

"I sent all the files to Vergo, already." Even in saying that, Cora-san grabs the messenger bag as they walk by it and shoulders it, "Guess it doesn't hurt to have it on hand, though." The blonde gives him a look of mock offense, one hand splayed against his chest to accentuate the exaggerated look of distress, "You act as though I'm irresponsible!"

Despite wanting to glare at the man, Law still snorts and gives him a vain shove towards the door (it does absolutely nothing other than make Cora-san laugh), " _One of us_  has to at least  _pretend_  to know how to be an adult."

They're still laughing when they manage to make it out to the parking lot and Law can only watch, somewhere between shock and amused, when Jora reaches up and yanks Cora-san down by his ear (ignores the man's shriek of pain) and greets Law with the most pleasant tone ever, even when she more or less  _shoves_  Cora-san into the back of the car. Law smiles back and tries to sooth her over by apologising and saying it was his fault Cora-san wasn't answering. The woman waves him off (' _Don't be silly, darling! There's nothing to apologise for, this boy has never been on time, not once in his life!_ ') but, she's still much calmer when she rounds to the driver's side of the car. Cora-san mouths a quiet ' _thank you_ ' at him before the window rolls up and the car is driving away.

Law shakes his head and doesn't stop smiling until he gets back to the cafe an hour later and is immediately assaulted by Shachi  _and_  Bepo _demanding_  to know how things went.

He makes a mental note to punch Shachi later for teaching Bepo these things. For now, he just rolls his eyes, gives Bepo a gentle nudge towards the stairs to try coaxing him upstairs; he flips his middle finger up at Shachi as he's going upstairs, making sure to keep it behind his back so Bepo doesn't see. Shachi just laughs in that annoying way that says he'll get answers later. Law makes sure he can't by turning on his best puppy eyes and telling Bepo's mom he has pre-course reading he  _needs_  to get done and says Shachi volunteered to close.

Twenty minutes later, his friend is sending him walls of texts that are little more than gibberish and swearing and demanding retribution. Law shuts him up by promising to tell him what he did all day; the bribe works, surprisingly enough and Law just rolls his eyes and falls into his bed with his books.

♥

Four hours later, while Law's lying in bed, trying to keep his eyes open to read one of his text books, his phone vibrates.

He immediately grabs it, doesn't even check to see who's texting him, and is genuinely confused by what he's reading.

_I think barty drowned n the pool do u think i should call sabo?_

Law is genuinely ashamed that it takes him more than a few seconds to actually register what he's reading and that  _Luffy_  is the one texting him. He groans and puts his face in his pillow for a few seconds (a few seconds he spends wondering if he can stay like this long enough to pass out and pretend he didn't see that) before he finally answers.

**To Luffy [8:04 pm]:** _What the actual shit, Luffy. You know Bartolomeo can't swim, why would you let him anywhere near the pool?_

_Wait whose house are you at you don't have a pool_

**From Luffy [8:07pm]:** _Franky's? Nami & Robin said u didnt wanna come tho? Didnt they tell u?_

Law groans again and tries to think about what exactly the girls had told him. He remembers hearing a few of the names of people that had been going (Specifically, Eustass was supposed to be there and Law really doesn't want to deal with him at the moment. He's been a smug asshole since he found out Law is dating someone older than them.) but he can't remember if they said  _where_  it was supposed to be. He does really like hanging out at Franky's place, but he probably still wouldn't have gone... he shakes the thoughts off and focuses on answering and hopes Bartolomeo isn't actually dead.

**To Luffy [8:08 pm]:** _They might have, I was a little distracted when I ran into them._

_Seriously, though, go check on Bartolomeo._

**From Luffy [8:09 pm]:** _Awww, were you with your new boyfriend?_

_That's so cute._

_The girls said he's kinda hot. Share the love, Law._

_Pics or it didn't happen!_

Law feels a vein in his forehead beginning to throb. He doesn't even need to think about who got a hold of Luffy's phone.

**To Luffy [8:11 pm]:** _Kidd, give Luffy his phone back and fuck off or, I swear to the gods, I will shove everything in your toolbox and the box itself up your ass._

**From Luffy [8:13 pm]:**   _Aww, what happened to the wrench? That was my favourite threat!_

 **To Luffy [8:14 pm]:**   _Do not think for one second I won't shove it down your throat before I shove it up your ass with everything else, don't fucking test me._

**From Luffy [8:19 pm]:** _You know_

_For someone who wants to be a doctor_

_You are kind of a major dickwad._

_Bart's fine, btw. Roronoa and me saved his dumb ass._

Law lets out a breath of relief and puts his face back in his pillow. Well, thank goodness for  _that_  at least... now how the fuck does he deal with his dumbass ex-slash-sometimes-best-friend-that-he-also-kind-of-wants-to-punch?

His phone vibrating again makes him raise his head with a suspicious glower, ready to tell Eustass to fuck off again; luckily, he actually reads who the text is from this time, when the small preview flashes across his lock screen.

**From Cora-san [8:33 pm]:** _This is so late, I'm so sorry, I hope I'm not waking you up_

_I literally just managed to get away from Dof_

_Hjkl_

_Fuckfuckfuck i'm sos orry for everything tha'ss about to. Happen_

Law blinks at his phone, feels a little off-balance from how quick he just went from angry to happy to confused. He's getting ready to ask what happened when the new wave of texts come in... and finds himself extremely grateful that his phone is rarely, if ever, on anything other than vibrate. That doesn't stop him from bringing his hand up to his face in exasperation, however.

**From Cora-san [8:37 pm]:** _Holy shit, how much do you two text?_

_You two are so weird_

_Hey how come Roci has your number and I don't?_

_I totally just stole your number_

_You speak Spanish and Italian that is amazing why did I never know this_

_Pretty sure you guessed it isn't Roci anymore by now so I'll make this quick_

_Did you call me an asshole in Italian wtf Law I thought we were friends_

_Oh that was from two months ago nvm. But I really did have something to tell you_

There's a small lull in the texts and Law wonders what Doflamingo could possibly be sending him that's taking so long to type. Or, maybe he's lucky and Cora-san got his phone back and is just trying to get away from his overly intrusive sibling.

**From Cora-san [8:42 pm]:** _TELL ROCI TO STOP HITTING ME FOR ONE JESUS FUCK HE NEARLY TOOK MY EYE OUT_

**To Cora-san [8:43 pm]:** _Good, give him his phone back._

Ok, Law shouldn't interrupt and he shouldn't be encouraging these two fighting but  _seriously_? He doesn't want to deal with Doflamingo right now. He wants to talk to his boyfriend and go to sleep and maybe (probably) check to make sure his friends from school aren't all dead. ... Which he can technically do in the morning after sleep has been accomplished.

**From Cora-san [8:44 pm]:** _Screw both of you_

_I'll give it to him in a second_

_I just wanted to let you know that you should definitely still come to the party this weekend_

_Roci can give you all the details but I promise it'll be oodles of fun and not as big a disaster as we thought earlier_

_Ok seriously tell him to stop trying to take my eyes out_

Before Law can send a long string of swears and threats to the older brother, his phone starts a steady vibration in place of a ringtone and he quickly answers the call, "Doflamingo, I swear—"

" _No, no! It's me, I swear it's me! I'm so sorry I didn't realise he was still behind me until he was trying to grab my phone!_ "

The threat hangs in the air and Law immediately feels all the murderous intent that had been building up wash out of him as he's listening to the apologetic babbling and he lets out a slow, relieved breath that comes out as a laugh, "Hi to you, too."

" _I—yeah. Hi. ... I'm so sorry._ "

"Nah, it's cool. He'd have done it sooner or later anyways."

" _Well, yeah... but I wasn't sure you were still awake. You weren't asleep were you?"_

"No, I was texting some of my friends. ... Well." Law feels his eye twitch as he remembers the ignored conversation, "They were texting me. That party I was invited to?" Cora-san makes an affirmative noise to show he remembers; it also sounds confused and Law sighs, "Yeah, so. Bartolomeo? The one we ran into with the piercings? Apparently he almost drowned. So, Luffy's reaction instead of. Y'know. Checking on him was to text me. And it just kind of blew up from there."

" _... Is... is that... normal?_ "

"Unfortunately, yes." Law rolls his eyes. He's starting to move his books off his bed and clicks his bedside lamp off before he crawls under one of his blankets with a small yawn, "So, yeah, that's why I didn't want to go to the party. Kinda wish I had—it's at one of the houses I'm actually ok with—but way better I didn't go. Zoro's probably having a drinking contest and as great as Sanji's food is, Eustass is there, too. I'm not in the mood to deal with him."

There's a beat of silence before Cora-san's voice comes back.

" _Your ex, right?_ " Law kind of wants to kick himself; before he can try to add any sort of reassurance, Cora-san's already continuing, sounding more worried than upset, " _Is everything ok? I thought you two were still friends?_ "

"What? No, yeah, we're still friends. He's just been an asshole lately. We get along about as well as we ever have; he's just been going out of his way to piss me off lately, it's fine. I haven't shoved a wrench down his throat. ...Yet."

" _Law!_ " He suspects the tone is meant to be admonishing, but he can still hear the laugh behind it, " _But everything's good, right? You two aren't actually fighting or anything?"_

"Nah. I mean, we might throw a few punches at each other every once in a while, when we run into each other, but we're cool. He's that friend that goes out of their way to give you a hard time when you start dating someone new. So, of course, when he found out I was dating you... and... y'know," Law feels his eye twitch, "Now that I'm thinking about it, I have no idea who told him."

Cora-san laughs and assures him that everything will be fine in the long run; and, the funny part is, Law actually believes him. He's still getting used to dating someone that doesn't get jealous over the slightest mention of another person (that had been a very short-lived relationship and he can't even remember why he'd been dating either of the people that had been like that) and it's... actually more comforting than he'd have thought possible, knowing Cora-san doesn't care that he still hangs out with some of his ex's. Yeah, there are others he never talks to anymore (and would probably punch on sight, honestly); but, he's at least on speaking terms with most of them. ... Granted, Eustass is a league all his own and Law is quietly hoping that he  _never_  meets Cora-san; but, he's even more worried about the prospect of Eustass meeting Doflamingo. Because those two would either clash or get along  _way too well_. Law doesn't want to find out which.

He's brought out of his thoughts by the sound of his name and makes a sleepy hum in response, "I'm here. Sorry."

" _Go to sleep, Law._ " Cora-san's voice is soft. Like he's lying right next to Law and petting his hair. Law actually makes a mild whine when he remembers that the man's on the phone. It earns him another laugh, " _I know, **mi sol.**  But there will be plenty of time to talk tomorrow. I'll see you in the morning, so get some sleep, ok?_"

"M'not... your sun." Law tries to stifle the yawn behind his hand. One of Cora-san's most recent hobbies is finding ways to fluster Law; and, his absolute favourite, is coming up with various terms of endearment to drown the younger man in. So far, that one seems to be his favourite. Even though it doesn't make Law blush and scowl anymore, Cora-san still uses it the most over any other endearment. (Honestly, Law's not entirely sure the man realises he's saying it, most times; because, every time Law tries to argue, Cora-san just looks confused like he has no idea what Law's talking about.)

" _An argument for later. Should I call you **mi cielo**_   _again? Or **mi rey**?"_

Law grumbles and pulls his blanket over his head, "You're an ass."

Cora-san just laughs, " _Eloquent as ever, Law. Now go to sleep._ "

♥

The next morning, Law wakes up to over fifty new texts.

Most of them are drunk texts, granted, and a good chunk are Bartolomeo accusing him of being the worst friend ever (which he will accept because he really should've checked on him last night; but, Cora-san was  _obviously_  the better choice there)... and then at least fifteen messages are all Eustass trying to bribe and blackmail him for pictures of Cora-san.

As Law's trying to wake up enough to go downstairs and help set up the café, he comes to the conclusion that he is absolutely punching Eustass next time he sees him and making good on the threat of shoving a wrench down his throat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have had this mostly done for almost two weeks, but then life blew up and I am so dead tired right now. I haven't slept in three days, I feel a-fucking-mazing 83
> 
> This chapter was kind of plot-exposition heavy so I apologise for that but I also don't because I am excite.
> 
> In other news, I missed Law's birthday. I'm sorry bby. I WAS CONVINCED IT WAS TODAY AND THEN I REALISED I WAS THINKING OF A DIFFERENT GRUMPY FAVE THAT'S NOT EVEN IN THIS SERIES. So. Please consider this offering of fluff a suitable birthday gift for the grumpiest sleep deprived panda of all pirate doctors. (Honestly, there was supposed to be one more small part to this chapter; but I think it fits in better as the opening for the next chapter and jfc this was not supposed to be multi-chaptered like this.)
> 
> But anyways, I need sleep. C&C are always welcome and lemme know if you spot typos o/ love you all! (someone give me more ridiculously cute endearments for Cora-san to use to make Law blush, I need Cora-san drowning Law in love but literally all I remember about Spanish endearments is from Hetalia and that was like six years ago ok)
> 
> oh! one last thing! If any of you want to bother me off AO3, feel free to hit me up on [tumblr](http://acemadeofglass.tumblr.com)! My ask box and messenger are both on and open!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dinner events are probably the bane of everyone's existence. Especially when said dinners involve formally meeting family.  
> Though, really, planning is way worse than anything the dinner could actually entail... right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4 was originally a lot longer than this, but I decided to cut it in half due to length and because I wanted to give a heads up about future elements of the story that I'll mention in the post-note.  
> ♥This chapter starts with an overlap to the previous chapter, showing what was going on with Cora-san while he was texting Law and after♥  
> ♥A lot more plot sneaked in than was originally intended but there is a reason for it♥  
> ♥Sibling shenanigans♥

Rocinante lets out a slow breath when he's finally free from the Hell meeting and starts heading down the halls of the Donquixote mansion, towards the front door, in hopes of escaping before anyone notices.

He can still hear his brother in the conference room, arguing with his guests. Normally, Doflamingo has at least _some_ tolerance for dealing with Moria... the fact they're _technically_ on Whitebeard's turf, that Moria was stupid enough to even _think_ of starting shit with them on Whitebeard's turf, _nowhere near his own territory_ —well... it ended poorly. As everyone knew it would. The fact Moria tried to protest and say it _hadn't_ been his fault, when Baby and Sugar were blatantly still sporting the bruises and cuts and abrasions, certainly hadn't helped any.

Honestly, he's only surprised that his brother _didn't_ rip the man's throat out in the middle of the meeting. Though that very well may have had to do with the fact Crocodile and Vergo were there to help Rocinante restrain him.

That alone was another shit storm waiting to happen.

Moria had nearly thrown a tantrum when he noticed the younger Donquixote brother in the room, quietly sitting in Doflamingo's shadow and ready to intervene as it became necessary. Crocodile hadn't been pleased to see him either, but had smartly kept his mouth shut and his focus on helping Doflamingo keep everything else under... something that resembled control. The protests had been short-lived, thankfully, with little more than a solid glare from the elder brother and the meeting progressed.

Not well, oh no; everything had gone downhill after that, but it was progress, none the less. Enough that they knew there would be representatives from Moria's group at Saturday's business dinner.

There were still left a few questions about the other representatives; but, Moria was their main concern for the moment. Mihawk would show up if he so desired (he normally didn't, but maybe news of Whitebeard's attendance would pique his interest); Boa was even less inclined to show up and had zero incentive to do so and _never_ sent representatives; and, Bartholomew... honestly, Rocinante wasn't sure what to think of him or how to figure him out.

He did know, however, that if Bartholomew decided to show up... the dinner was going to be interesting for all sorts of reasons they hadn't even begun to worry about.

 _Speaking of..._.

Rocinante finally pulls his phone from his pocket and swears, quietly, to himself when he sees the time. It's much later than he assumed. Conferences rarely run past six p.m. and it's already nearly eight-thirty. He wants to keep his promise—to text Law and tell him everything went well enough and everything's all right. More so that _maybe_ the party won't be a complete disaster on Saturday and it might actually be fun to have Law there for a little bit before he takes the girls to his apartment.

Thinking back over the day, he kind of wonders how Law even managed to stay awake. The younger man had nearly tripped over himself more times than Rocinante did regularly... then again, he _does_ remember Law mentioning that he doesn't sleep much around the beginning of semesters. His classes haven't even started yet and he's already pulling all-nighters when and where he can.

It's... worrisome.  To say the very least.

He considers, briefly, that he should probably wait until morning to text Law; alternatively, he wouldn't be surprised if Law was still awake and waiting on a text. If nothing else, he's confident enough that Law's phone is on vibrate ninety-nine percent of the time (the one percent being when he's expecting a call or text from Bepo or his parents). So, even if he is asleep—and Rocinante really hopes he is, because Law is a _mess_ when he's tired. Adorable, but a mess none the less—he's at least confident the texts won't wake him up.

**To Law [20:23]:** _This is so late, I'm so sorry, I hope I'm not waking you up_

_I literally just managed to get away from Dof_

"Hey, Roci, what'cha doing?"

Rocinante lets out a startled swear when weight is suddenly thrown into his back and nearly sends him to the floor. Luckily, he catches himself and glares up over his shoulder while he tries to hide his phone against his chest.

"What the hell, Doffy, necessary—what are you—don't take my phone, you asshole!"

"I just wanna see who you're texting—ooh-ho!" Doflamingo puts the rest of his weight on his younger brother, trapping him in a hug in his attempts to look over his shoulder, "Someone's got a new fling, let me seeeee~"

"It's none of your business who I'm texting!" Rocinante protests; he can't even try to deny the accusations and really hopes this doesn't blow up in his face in the long run.

His brother is just that little bit taller and heavier—just enough that Rocinante can't squirm free from under his weight and literally all he can do is try to keep his phone out of his brother's reach... which is proving to be futile. The last thing he manages (attempts) to send is an apology because he _knows_ exactly what happens next.

He nearly shrieks when they both finally end up tumbling to the ground, his brother still making grabby hands for his phone and throwing Rocinante's already horrible sense of balance off. Even then, they're wrestling for control of the phone with a number of colourful swears from both of them; ultimately, Doflamingo ends up victorious, happily sitting on his brother's back and beginning to go through his message logs.

The thing about both of them being as tall and lanky as they are, is that they can end up in a _variety_ of positions that should probably be uncomfortable (and sometimes they are) and some that would probably break most people, if not just end in severe injury.

Case in point, Rocinante is face-down on the ground, one arm pinned behind his back beneath his brother's weight and the other trapped under his own body. Doflamingo is sitting in the middle of his back, using his weight to his advantage to keep his brother's arms pinned, with one leg angled out so he can keep a foot on the back of his brother's knees to convince him not to attempt any kicking.

Rocinante grunts and tries to work at least one of his arms free. He knows he isn't getting the one from under his brother, which leaves him to try working the one beneath his own body free. He's distracted, just for a moment, at the impressed whistle from above him.

"Jesus Christ, how much do you two text each other?" Doflamingo asks, sounding genuinely amazed as he scrolls through the logs, "How do you even get this much of a conversation out of Law?"

" _None of your business, now let me up_!" He growls back still trying to squirm out from under his brother, especially when he hears the tell-tale tapping of a text being typed, "What are you— _Doffy, no_!"

"I'm just saying hi; chill the fuck out, bro. How come you never mentioned Law was multilingual?"

"Get out of my message logs and let me up!"

"Nope— _did he call me an asshole, what the fuck._ "

"You _are_ an asshole!"

Rocinante finally manages to get enough leverage with his trapped arm to push off on it, jostling his brother just long enough to reach back and hit him and successfully knock him off. There's another few seconds of them wrestling again before Doflamingo managers to pin him back to the ground, this time ensuring both arms are pinned to his back with an annoyed growl.

"Chill the fuck out, Roci. I'm _literally_ just saying hi. It's just Law, _isn't it_? It's not like I'm threatening your date."

The silence that follows is thick with tension. Enough so that Rocinante feels a cold sweat breaking out as he waits for the backlash. A jolt runs up his spine when Doflamingo starts tapping his fingers between his shoulders, still texting with one hand.

"So. _Were_ you planning on telling me any time soon?" He asks and apparently is not expecting an answer, because he just carries right on, "Now. I'm inviting Law to dinner again this weekend. I _trust_ you'll find a way to convince him to show up if I give this back?"

"He doesn't need to be there, Doffy."

"I would like to inform you that he apparently encourages you nearly taking my eye out." The change in subject makes Rocinante struggle to look over his shoulder. Even from the unfortunate angle he can see the unamused slant of a frown on his brother's face. Doflamingo just ignores him, ignores that he changed the subject, and continues his prior train of thought, "I think Law being there will be beneficial for all involved parties. Well. Maybe not any of the Warlords that decide to show up. But, as far as Whitebeard goes... _if_ Ace and Sabo do show up. Having Law around would be more than beneficial. And we both know that Whitebeard is far more important than dealing with the Warlords... so, I'll leave this to you, yes?"

Doflamingo finally stands, but doesn't bother offering Rocinante a hand up; in return, Rocinante knocks him back to the floor, hurriedly snatching his phone away to inspect the damage of whatever his brother's sent. A moment later, Doflamingo pushes him off and finally leaves him alone to try fixing this mess.

Well, seeing as Law managed to get at least one text in during Doflamingo's senseless chatter, Rocinante settles for calling to clear things up. He _could_ text... but, he also doubts Law would be willing to believe a text saying that it wasn't his brother anymore. Sure enough, there's a threat waiting as soon as Law answers the phone.

" _Doflamingo, I swear_ —"

"No, no! It's me, I swear it's me!" Normally, he'd never consider interrupting Law; but, right now he's rushing to get the apology out, "I'm so sorry, I didn't realise he was still behind me until he was trying to grab my phone!"

Just remembering the few minutes prior is enough to make his shoulder throb in protest. He can already tell it's going to be in pain for the next few days; but, he's at least comforted by the knowledge that his brother is probably going to have a swollen cheek from getting hit. He shakes the thoughts away, a small smile crossing his face just from hearing Law's voice.

He probably shouldn't be having this conversation in the middle of the hallway in the main house, but... if Doflamingo already knows, then everyone else is going to know soon enough, probably. Even if his brother doesn't tell them, _if_ he gets Law to agree to going to this dinner... it's probably going to become pretty obvious.

He means to bring the dinner up. He really does; but, as they keep talking, he can tell Law's more than ready to go to sleep and he has to laugh a little, "Law?"

" _I'm here. Sorry._ "

"Go to sleep, Law." Rocinante smiles a little and laughs when he hears the small whine on the other end of the phone, "I know, _mi sol_. But there will be plenty of time to talk tomorrow. I'll see you in the morning, so get some sleep, ok?"

Law attempts to argue, likely trying to make the conversation last longer, before he finally gives in and mumbles a sleepy 'goodnight'. Rocinante worries, for the briefest moment, that he'll fall asleep still holding the phone; but, the line goes completely silent almost immediately after and he smiles, finally standing and sliding his phone into his back pocket.

He manages to catch Jora before the woman turns in for the night and asks for one last ride. He considers stopping by the café to get his nightly espresso before he remembers that Law's already in bed, momentarily wonders who's running the counter, and then finally remembers the shiny new coffee maker he has waiting in his apartment.

He ends up going back to his apartment and completely forgets the coffee as soon as he sees the mess they left in his doorway. The bags from the store are all neatly packed inside the largest one and pushed safely beneath the desk by the door (out of the way and easy to spot before he leaves); but, the pillows are still scattered on the floor and the two comforters are stacked next to the desk, still in their own bags.

It's easy enough to gather the pillows into his arms and carry them back to his room. He smiles at the pile of blankets already there and drops the pillows onto the floor to start figuring out what should be where. There's no real method at the moment: he moves the blankets and pillows they got specifically for Sugar and Baby off to the side, carefully folded and stacked at the end of the bed; the rest of the blankets end up at the end of the bed for Law to situate as he sees fit next time he's over, along with most of the pillows. He puts one of larger pillows at the head of the bed for himself and falls face first into his mattress, determined to go to sleep at a remotely reasonable time.

He tosses and turns for a good hour or so before he finally grabs a few of the blankets and a few more pillows to situate around himself to see if it helps any.

At the very least, it makes the bed feel a little smaller, a little less lonely than it is... but, he still doesn't manage to fall asleep.

It's not until much, _much_ later—at four-thirty, when his first alarm goes off and he's starting to have trouble keeping his eyes open—that he finally remembers that he didn't have any coffee when he got home. He groans and turns over to put his face in his pillow, almost hoping that if he stays that way long enough he'll manage to fall asleep.

He could, hypothetically, just go make himself an espresso right now and sleep through the day.

But, then he'd have to deal with Doffy being an absolute terror and probably harassing Law all day. And, honestly, he kind of really needs a hug after dealing with his brother and their... _'friends'_... for more than three hours.

So, against his better judgement, he finally drags himself out of bed when his five-thirty alarm goes off (his failsafe alarm in case he sleeps through the first one; this alarm is much louder and has been tested to jolt him out of his most dead-to-the-world state of sleep) and hopes that _maybe_ an ice cold shower will wake him up and motivate him to get to the coffee shop all the faster.

♥

Law was awake just long enough to help open shop; literally as soon as Shachi showed up—still half-asleep and yawning out a greeting—Law was already heading back upstairs and was face down in bed before the doors officially opened for customers. He thinks he heard something about Penguin showing up later, but he really doesn't care right now. (That's a lie; he absolutely cares, but he is too damn tired to try being excited to see one of his best friends again.)

The thing is, when he actually gets a full night's sleep after pulling all-nighters... is that he is _really exhausted_ afterwards. He definitely got enough sleep—he hung up with Cora-san around nine and his alarm went off at five-thirty. Sleep was not the issue for once.

Despite that, he feels sluggish and his body still feels heavy from running on two to four hours of sleep every night for almost a week. He knows it's bad for him and he _knows_ it's a habit he needs to break; he just can't help it. He gets anxious when classes start and when he gets anxious the quickest way to calm down is to work on class work that put him in that mood to begin with.

Though, lately, he's finding that being around Cora-san is equally effective and finds himself constantly wondering if being around the older man is going to be detrimental when the semester actually starts....

The thoughts drift off as sleep overtakes him again.

What feels like a few minutes later, however, he feels someone pushing at his shoulder and poking him and he lets out a low, annoyed groan before pulling a pillow over his head.

"Go away, Bepo."

This does absolutely nothing to deter the pushing and poking and just results in a whine filling his room, "Laaaaaaw. Wake uuuuuuuup!"

"I literally just fell back asleep. Your parents and Shachi are handling the counter right now."

"Well, yeah, I know, but—"

" _Bepo_."

The shaking finally stops and Law lets out a content sigh, hoping that his brother got the idea and is finally going to let him sleep... but, a moment later, his pillow is taken away and Bepo's back to poking him and pulling on his arm.

"The nice coffee man's downstairs, though!"

Or not. And what the hell even is that supposed to mean? Law isn't _nearly_ awake enough to deal with this.

"Bepo. We live above a coffee shop. The 'nice coffee man' is _always_ here."

"Not dad!" Bepo tugs on his arm again, clearly trying to drag him from the bed but unable to get a good grip to do so. There's more frustrated noises before he continues, "The _other_ nice—the one you're dating!"

That's enough to jostle Law to full awareness and he immediately bolts upright... he feels a little bad for knocking Bepo over; but, also not the least bit bad for how annoying the younger was being.

"Cora-san's here? What time is it—it's late, why is he here so late?" Law glances at the clock by his bed before he dives into his closet for clothes. Late is an understatement and he didn't realise how long he _had_ been asleep (two hours; it's just about eight and he came up a bit before six. Cora-san usually shows up, at the latest, at six-thirty). He tugs a sweater over his head before he gives Bepo a curious look and asks, "How long has he been here?"

Bepo grumbles at him and spends a few seconds refusing to answer—the few seconds it takes for Law to find a pair of jeans to pull on—but eventually gives in, "He got here right before I came to get you. Mom said he could come upstairs, but he said he was fine waiting."

"Thanks, Beps." Law fluffs his hair when he walks by and gives a little smile, "Sorry I was being so grumpy—what?"

He frowns and nearly stumbles when the younger catches his arm to keep him from heading downstairs. When Law looks back at him, Bepo's giving him the biggest, saddest puppy dog eyes imaginable and Law reflexively feels like a horrible person, even though he has no idea what brought about the expression.

"Are you two going somewhere?" Bepo asks, looking more than a little distressed and put off, "You said you'd take me to New World before your shift started!"

Oh. Right, he had promised that.

It's not that he doesn't trust Bepo not to get lost—on the contrary, Bepo probably has the best sense of direction of anyone Law's ever known—but with all the Whitebeard fuss, Law's reluctant to let him go anywhere alone. He's aware Bepo's more than capable of taking care of himself—honestly, anyone living in their area has to be capable of surviving a fight... but that doesn't mean he _wants_ him getting in a fight.

"I know, Beps. Don't worry, we're still going. I'm just going down to say hi and stuff." A small lightbulb goes off in his mind as he's trying to assure his brother everything's fine. He smiles at the thought and fluffs Bepo's hair again, "Maybe Cora-san will want to go, too? You can ask him to make that coffee you like before we leave and maybe you can talk him into calling someone for a ride. You've never been in one of their cars, so... how's that sound? Good idea?"

Bepo looks genuinely excited by the idea—whether for the coffee or the fancy luxury cars, he's not sure—gives a quick nod and is racing downstairs before Law has a chance to stop him. So, Law ends up running after him and nearly crashes into him at the base of the stairs.

Luckily, he manages to stop himself and just lets out a small sigh, grateful the younger remembered he's not supposed to run in the store when there are customers. His attention, however, is immediately diverted to a familiar form taking up the end of the bar and he gives Bepo a small nudge and look to stay put for a few seconds. It earns him a pout; but, Bepo still nods and goes to busy himself elsewhere so the two can have at least a _few_ minutes to themselves. Law's smiling when he rolls his eyes and rounds the bar towards the man. He waves and greets a few of the regular customers that spot him, but doesn't stop to chat like he would if he were working.

Instead, he settles onto the barstool next to Cora-san and immediately leans on the man's arm with only a small 'morning' as a proximity warning.

Cora-san startles and Law has to bite hard on his tongue to keep from laughing. That doesn't stop him from smiling and giving the man a curious look, "You ok? Rough night?"

"That obvious?" Cora-san laughs and Law gives a passing nod.

Cora-san's rubbing at his eyes like he just woke up—or didn't get enough sleep, Law's been subject to both situations enough times to know they feel the same—and looks ready to curl up fall asleep on the counter. Law rubs his shoulder a little, amused by the sleepily contented sigh it earns him.

"Didn't sleep too good?"

"Not really." Cora-san stifles a yawn behind his hand, "Don't tell Doffy, but... he was right. I _can't_ sleep without coffee. I was going to make a cup when I got back to my place and completely forgot so... I think I might've been asleep on and off for a few hours, but... not. Y'know?"

Law nods again to show he _does_ understand. More than understands. That's how he is most of the week.

"Shouldn't you be home in bed, then?" Law asks, genuinely curious as to why the man's out and more so _how_. "You could've just come by later."

His answer this time is Cora-san turning and wrapping him up in a hug. Not the suffocating hug he normally does to fluster Law, or the draping hug where he pretends that gravity is forcing him to smother Law. Just... a surprisingly normal hug.

Not clingy, not too tight, not too loose, just... there.

Law frowns a little and returns the hug, trying to encourage a tighter hug by curling his arms tight around Cora-san's torso. It works, a little, and he's pretty sure it's just the fact the man is overly conscious of social etiquette that keeps him from pulling Law into his lap for a full-on smothering hug.

"Cora-san?"

"Last night sucked and I need a hug. Hugs are better than sleep. Doffy's an asshole."

Ok, yeah, that's a pretty good reason.

Law smiles and snuggles into the hug as best he can without crawling into the man's lap, "Wanna talk about it?"

"Hug first."

Law nods and laughs a little, "Fair enough. I don't work until later so you can get all the hugs you want. Oh." He perks up when he finally remembers and wiggles out of the hug enough to beckon Bepo over, "Oi, Bepo!"

Almost immediately, his younger brother materialises next to him, looking up at Cora-san with wide eyes. It's enough to turn the older man's confused pout into an amused smile and Law smiles in turn when he gestures to the youngest.

"I'm supposed to take Bepo to New World before my shifts starts.  We were wondering if—"

"Pumpkin coffee!"

"That... too...."

Law sighs and brings a hand up to his face in exasperation when Bepo starts bouncing in place and Cora-san laughs. Law peeks through his fingers after a moment and tries to explain.

"Ok, what I was _going_ to say was: We were wondering if you wanted to come along. And make Bepo another cup of the s'mores and pumpkin spice coffee. But," He stresses the word to get Bepo's attention and gives him a warning look, "If you're tired, that's cool, too. We can all hang out another day. _Right, Bepo?_ "

Bepo's cheeks puff up in a pout but he still nods in agreement before he's back to giving Cora-san a wide-eyed, expectant look. The blonde's still chuckling under his breath when he nods.

"Sounds fun. Just let me get something in my system so I can wake up. Tea sounds good. Should I call someone for a ride or should we take the bus?"

"I thought you didn't like the buses?" Law asks with a frown. Last he checked, the man hated being cooped up in the public transits and even trains were generally off limits. Bepo wrinkles his nose, too.

"Buses are dumb."

"Bepo, you're going to have to take the bus next year. Get used to it."

"They're too hot!"

"Doffy's driving today."

Cora-san interrupting them efficiently cuts their arguing off and turns their attention back to the blond. Cora-san gives them a wide smile of feigned innocence, like he didn't just drop such horrible news on them.

"That's why I suggested the bus."

Bepo looks confused. Law feels a ripple of doubt and something akin to fear trying to crawl up his spine. He hasn't actually been in the car with Doflamingo, but he's heard stories from Cora-san and seen the exasperated and slightly fearful looks on some of their associates faces when Doflamingo says he's taking over for whoever's _supposed_ to be driving. So far, Law's only known Vergo to be able to tell him 'no' and get away with it; he saw Baby protest once—little more than surprised squeak—before she backed down under the pointed look from her boss. He remembers, quite distinctly, being grateful that he hadn't been in the car when it disappeared down the street in record time. ... And, when he really thinks about it....

"... Isn't he just going to be a pain in the ass if we call him for a ride?" Law wrinkles his nose as the thought occurs to him, "He was being an ass last night, too."

"He'll probably pester you about the dinner," Cora-san agrees with a laugh, "I'm supposed to convince you it's not going to be terrible and... I kind of agree. I'm actually looking forward to it, a little. We're expecting a lot of our other partners to show up and, I'm probably not supposed to mention this but screw him... he's hoping you'll show up to reign in Ace and Sabo."

Law just gives him a blank look for a long moment (exchanges a confused look with Bepo, who shrugs like he's not sure about the logic either) before he tries to figure out where this conclusion even came from.

"I'm... not remotely capable of controlling either of them."

"I've brought this point up, as well," Cora-san assures him with a sigh and a shrug, "But, Doffy isn't sure what to make of them and, honestly, neither am I. Neither of us—none of us, honestly... know anything about either of them. You do. I suppose it's more accurate to say he's hoping you'll break the ice if they are there and we're _very_ certain they're going to be."

While Law at least kind of understands the reasoning there (he's usually the first to admit that dealing with any of the brothers is a task, even if he likes all three of them), he's also not sure how he feels about being used in such a manner. Luffy is usually the icebreaker at any party he's been to and... honestly, Law usually feels overwhelmed around too many people. _Especially_ people he doesn't know and....

He frowns when another thought crosses his mind—when he remembers that this dinner _is_ mostly a business dinner, even if it's also Doffy's excuse to throw a party—and is starting to hope he's wrong.

"Uh... ok, let's just assume I'm agreeing to this. Just completely hypothetically agreeing."

"Right."

"Is this going to be anything like his other house parties?"

"Sort of." Cora-san makes an idle waving gesture to show it's a small matter, "It's still going to be as extravagant as the papers make them out to be, I'm sure. The only difference is there won't be any reporters and there might be a slightly different dress code. Something more formal."

Law groans and tries to ignore the concerned look he gets by putting his face in his hands.

"Ugh... I just thought of that. I don't _own_ any formal clothes and I'm pretty sure Ace is going to be an absolute _nightmare_ if he has to dress formal. Sabo might be able to handle him. But, seriously. Why would he think. I can handle either of them?"

Cora-san shrugs; but, he's still smiling. More so than before, if possible, and Law is suddenly extremely suspicious of the man.

"We can double check with Doffy, if it helps," Cora-san assures him, "But I'm pretty sure everyone's going to be dressed fairly formal, Doffy and me included. Maybe you going will make him overlook the tiny details?"

Law gives him a pointed look between his fingers and the blond laughs in response.

"Well, if all else fails, a new suit isn't too much trouble. If you're willing to hold still for Jora, I'm sure she can have something ready by Saturday. Or, we can go shopping again. Shopping was fun."

Before Law can think to protest he hears his name being called from the counter and looks back in confusion. Bepo's mother is beckoning him over from where she's standing at the opposite end of the bar, handing customers their drinks as Shachi finishes them. He gives Cora-san a pointed glower that says _this_ particular conversation is far from over before he heeds the call.

"Yes, ma'am?"

His tone immediately becomes much more polite, even when she sighs and reaches over to try fixing his bangs away from his eyes in a distracted manner.

"Oh, darling. I'm glad you slept last night, but I do wish you'd stop pulling those horrid all-nighters. Your eyes are terribly bruised." She manages to multitask greeting new customers, thanking them as she hands them their coffee, and lightly chastising Law. Luckily, the line is dying down so that Shachi is handing people their coffee as he finishes and she pulls Law a bit further to the side.

"I'm not certain you were awake enough to hear earlier, but Penguin's back in town and was going to stop by later."

"I heard," he assures her, is actually awake enough now to look even a little excited when he smiles, "He came back early, but I hope he still had a good vacation. He needed it after last semester."

The woman laughs and nods in agreement, "Yes, I recall him being quite frazzled towards the end. At any rate, he called earlier, asking if there were any shifts he could pick up. I told him I'd ask when you woke up."

Law's smile immediately turns into a confused frown, "I mean... I don't mind, but why ask me first? Pen hates my shifts and I'm pretty sure Shachi's working more than me next week?"

"He actually volunteered to pick up your shifts specifically." She says with a knowing smile, "He's telling you to take some time for yourself, darling. All of us know you're stressing out and we understand, we do, but that doesn't mean it's ok for you to burn out before your semester even starts. So, I was thinking of giving him your shifts for the rest of this week and... how about half of next week? I know you'll never agree to take an entire week off, but I was _hoping_...."

Her eyes drift down the bar and Law feels heat crawling up the back of his neck when he groans.

"Bepo told you, didn't he?"

"It really wasn't that hard to notice." She attempts to hide the smile behind a hand; but, Law can still see the ways the edges of her eyes crinkle and the spark of delight, "I'm happy for you, love. Would it really be so terrible to take a week off? You two could actually go out of town and do something fun for a change. Instead of just wandering around town."

"Hey, it is plenty fun around town if you know where to go!" Law protests. He's not wrong, but he also knows there are places just outside of town that are more exciting, even if it's just because he doesn't get to visit them very often. Still, he thinks on it for a moment, considering just how badly this could end.

First and foremost, he'd need to make sure Cora-san was ok with it and could actually get away from his brother for the time they were gone. The last thing he'd want is the man getting called in the middle of their trip to come back early.

Second, he's not really sure where they'd go.

There's Sabaody Park, which is relatively close and has _plenty_ to do and Law remembers going with Bepo and his family a lot when they were little. The last time had been just short of a disaster and he can't even remember what happened... he kind of remembers local police rushing everyone out of the park, but that's about it. But, the park hadn't closed and he hasn't heard anything about a drop in their business.

There's a concert hall about two miles away from the amusement park (they might be linked, he's never really sure) that's super popular. He's not sure who's set to be playing any time soon; but, he remembers Luffy and Ace throwing him in the back of Ace's jeep and more or less _kidnapping him_ to a Soul King concert they got free tickets for; Sabo had tried to assure him it was Luffy's way of trying to cheer him up after his fight with Eustass... which, ok, it had been _bad_ but he wasn't _sulking_. It had been a good change of scenery though, even with all of Luffy's tight-knit friends also attending.

Law still isn't over the fact they actually _know_ the Soul King and _that's_ how they managed to get enough tickets for everyone that went.

In the opposite direction of Sabaody and the concert hall is the beach and a _huge_ reservoir that is dedicated to preserving the local sea-life. No aquariums, no tanks, the only "captive" species are those they bring in for medical purposes before releasing them, and daily trips out into the sea to view the creatures from a safe distance. Law remembers having a lot of fun the last time he went there, even if it had been a class trip and a number of them almost fell overboard when a slightly-too-friendly pod of dolphins bumped into the side of their boat.

Bartolomeo _had_ fallen in the water and _that's_ how everyone found out he couldn't swim... luckily, that disaster had been quickly averted when a few of the dolphins helped nudge him close enough to the boat that Law and Luffy had been able to yank him back to the deck.

Or, if Law decides he hates himself enough, there's a huge marine base nearby that's mostly open to the public.

It's not that he hates _everyone_ in law enforcement and government seats... but, he does have a very strong disdain for the system itself. And even then he knows that it isn't really fair to hate the ones this far out from his hometown for what happened. There's a few he... kind of gets along with. The current fleet admiral, for one. He's always coming and going and every few months he'll stop by the coffee shop to chat with Bepo's parents for any news in the area. Luffy's grandfather, too. Law hasn't met him personally, but anyone that can make Luffy break into a cold sweat and sit down and behave by mere mention of name is automatically someone Law respects. And fears, because Sabo and Ace react the same way; but, mostly respects.

Honestly, the only reason he'd even consider going to tour the base is because he remembers Cora-san mentioning he has family in the marines and served for a short while when he was younger. Law hasn't heard the full story, yet; but, he's still acutely aware of the way Cora-san will sit up straighter at the first sounds of a recruitment commercial on the radio or tv. He might enjoy it and Law's willing to swallow his disdain for a while for that.

Overall... it doesn't sound like a bad idea. If he manages to get Cora-san to agree. Especially since the man sounds like he needs a break from his brother.

So, he gives a slow nod and finally smiles again, "Sure. Maybe going out of town for a while will be good for both of us."

The smile he gets is nearly blinding and, somewhere behind him, he can hear Shachi giggling. He resists the urge to throw something by sheer will and focusing on what Bepo's mother is trying to tell him now.

"Wonderful! I'll let Penguin know when he comes by later if you aren't back by then!"

Law gets ready to head back down the bar to tell Cora-san; but, the woman's laugh makes him stop cold and he ends up staying in his spot, suddenly extremely wary.

 "There was _one_ other thing I wanted to bring up." Her eyes are crinkling again and she makes no attempt to hide her smile this time. Something about it sends a new sense of foreboding racing through Law's mind. Her tone is still sugary sweet when she continues, "Since you've agreed and aren't closing shop tonight, we can actually all sit down at the dinner table for once. It's been a while since we had a family dinner."

This is very true. And, normally, Law would be way more excited than he is about the prospect of actually having dinner at a table instead of trying to eat between customers in the evening. But something still feels off.

"... I'm really not liking where this is going. For whatever it's worth, I'm really not—"

"So," She cuts him off and waves his concerns away by making an idle gesture towards the opposite end of the bar, "You should invite Rocinante to dinner. It wouldn't hurt to actually meet him as someone other than a customer, would it?"

For a moment, Law's genuinely confused. He's gotten so used to hearing him called everything else—Cora-san, Roci, and Bepo's endless nicknames for him—that he's almost completely forgotten the man's full name. Still, once he figures it out, he tries not to look as wary as he feels.

"I have the vaguest feeling there is going to be a horrible consequence if I try to get out of this."

"Don't be silly, there's no consequence! But, if you were wondering, by any chance... Bepo _was_ the one that suggested this."

Law resists the urge to groan and instead buries his face in his hands.

He _knew_ it. This was Bepo's doing, which means Shachi had a hand in it (given that the giggles have returned, he assumes he's right), and if he tries to get out of this without a plausible reason for why Cora-san can't come... Bepo is going to give him that kicked puppy look from Hell for _weeks_.

"I'll _ask him_ , but I can't guarantee he'll be able to come. I will ask, though," Law promises and sighs. He may as well get this over with. "So... since we're already kind of on topic of dinners and what not. I got invited to one of their house parties again."

"Oh? Are you actually going to this one?"

"Still deciding. Probably. I kind of want to."

"But?"

"It's formal. Maybe semi-formal, we don't know."

She still looks confused for a moment longer before she seems to realise what's wrong and makes a small ' _oh!_ ' before donning a look of consideration

"Well... that's certainly a problem. You've gotten taller since you graduated, so I'm quite certain your suit from then doesn't fit anymore." Her expression is slowly leveling out to confusion, "I don't have a problem with you buying new clothes, dear. It's your money to do with as you will and you've saved more than enough for a dress shirt and nice pants."

"I think he's plotting to buy me something and I don't know how to stop him." Law sighs and runs a hand back through his hair, "I'll figure something out. But, yeah so... Saturday I'll probably be out most the day... are you _sure_ it's ok for me to take a week and a half off, I don't mind helping out, really—"

"Hush, darling." Bepo's mother promptly swats him in the face (attempts to, at any rate; she has to jump a little to whap his forehead and, even then, she doesn't hit too hard), "Now. You've errands to run and plans to make. Shoo."

Law makes a face to keep from flipping Shachi off (who is still _laughing and Law is getting ready to tackle him_ ) and heads back down the bar, rubbing lightly at his forehead.

Bepo's taken over his seat, making animated gestures at a slowly-waking-up-but-still-really-dead-to-the-world Cora-san. The blonde is sipping at a steaming cup of... something that smells suspiciously like chocolate and a strong spice he can't place... but is still smiling and nodding between sips.

"Bepo, are you being a pest?" Law asks, flicking his brother's ear gently, "Let him finish waking up."

Bepo cuts himself off almost immediately and looks sheepish before he looks down, "Sorry...."

Law just gives a small hum and fluffs at his hair, finally taking note of the cup he's fiddling with and realises it was the s'mores and pumpkin spice coffee he could smell. He's not sure when Cora-san found the time to make it, but, Bepo is easily distracted by sipping his drink again and making happy hums to show he's completely forgotten being interrupted. Law smiles before finally turning his attention to Cora-san... and promptly quirks a confused brow at the look he's getting.

"What?"

"Don't be so mean, he was just telling me about his classes." Cora-san's frown looks about as confused as Law felt a moment ago and the younger man just laughs.

"I'm not. Ah. I guess you're never really around Bepo, huh? I'm not being mean, honest." He holds up two fingers, "Scout's honour."

"You weren't in scouts." Bepo points out, sticking his tongue out when Law flicks his ear again. He sends Cora-san a bright smile, "He wasn't being mean. Law's never mean to me! ... Or anyone, really, he's really nice, people just think he's mean because he gets in fights with Eustass and Zoro and—"

"—And Bepo's going to hush now." Law rolls his eyes and leans on his brother, chin resting on top of his head, "So, anyways. Soon as you're done, we can head to New World. Go ahead and call Doffy. It'll be faster to drive and you _really_ need to take a nap. Maybe he won't be a pain in the ass if we tell him I'm going this weekend."

Cora-san immediately lights up with a bright smile.

"Really? That's great! It'll be fun, I promise!"

"Law, can I go, too?" Bepo tries to look up at him, but fails to dislodge Law from his spot and just makes a protesting whine when he gets whacked, lightly, on the nose.

"Not in a million years, Bepo."

Law won't admit it, not aloud at any rate, but as much as he _wants_ to go to this party, there's still something about it that's rubbing him the wrong way. Maybe it's the Newgate group, maybe it's the idea of Ace and Sabo being there when they're _clearly busy elsewhere_ , maybe it's Cora-san mentioning some of their other partners... but _something_ about the party is just rubbing him all sorts of wrong ways. The hell if he's letting Bepo anywhere near that.

Cora-san intervenes before Bepo can protest, by reaching over and putting a hand on his shoulder with a calm smile, "Maybe next time. Doffy already has a headcount of who all we're expecting, we were just waiting for Law to say yes or no. Maybe next time, ok?"

Law doesn't need to look to know that Bepo has his cheeks puffed up in a pout; but, he feels his brother nod and mouths 'thank you' at Cora-san. The man waves him off, still smiling, before his attention turns to his phone. He doesn't bother calling, choosing instead to text while he finishes sipping at whatever he ordered. He soon pockets his phone and finishes the last bit of his drink.

"He'll be here in about fifteen minutes." Cora-san informs them, looking a little more awake than he did when he arrived, "Did you two need to grab anything?"

"Nah. Just showing Bepo where all his classes are going to be and filling out some last minute papers." Law shrugs. For a moment, there's a lull of comfortable silence between the three before Law finally sighs and shakes his head, "Ok, there was _one_ other thing... you don't have to say yes, but...."

He really doesn't want to do this.

He doesn't doubt that dinner's going to be fine. But he still feels kind of bad dropping the invitation so suddenly, especially when he knows how weird it probably sounds.

"... Er. Law? Are you still with us?"

Cora-san's voice snaps him back to reality and he gives a small laugh.

"Yeah, sorry. So. Uh... if you want, of course. Do you... maybe wanna have dinner with us tonight?" He feels Bepo perks up beneath him and puts a firm hand on his shoulder to keep him from interrupting and potentially guilt tripping the man into agreeing. "Penguin just got back into town from his vacation and was looking to pick up some shifts. So, he's covering for me for a bit. Since I'm not closing tonight, we were wondering if you'd want to join us. You don't have to, just... if you want."

Cora-san looks... confused. Which in turn makes Law give a small frown as he isn't sure what the man could be confused about.

"Do you not want me to?"

"What? No, I do, I just—I don't want you to think you _have_ to." Law flusters a little and hides it by sinking just enough behind Bepo so the flush on his face isn't _as_ obvious, "I'd... really like if you did, though."

"Then, yes." Cora-san smiles, bright and optimistic and genuine, "It sounds a lot more fun than my invitation, doesn't it?"

"I think the word you're looking for is 'safer'."

"Now, now," The blond chides, "Don't go scaring your brother like that. Doffy's house parties are _completely_ safe! We've yet to have a single incident!"

"... I'm pretty sure the papers said something about someone getting thrown out a window."

"That was a statue and was neither mine nor Doffy's nor anyone else in our household's doing. ... Honestly, I don't think we ever figured out _who_ threw the statue out the window."

Bepo snorts and giggles into his cup and Law just groans and hides his face in his brother's hair.

The more he thinks about it, the more this party sounds like a terrible idea.

"Ugh... whatever. We can talk about that later. So, you're coming. Great. So... we can just come back here after New World and you can chill and take a nap in my room if you want? My bed's smaller, obviously, but it's probably still better than going all the way to your apartment just to come back later?"

The rest of the time passes with idle chatter—most notably, Bepo convincing them that, instead of using the bed, they can just make a giant blanket fort. Law tried to argue, initially; but, Cora-san was immediately on board and Law knew for a _fact_ he couldn't win against Bepo _and_ Cora-san.

Doflamingo shows up, right on time, within his promised fifteen minutes, looking much better than the day before and wearing his usual grin. The grin widens, if possible, when Law confirms that he'll be at the dinner party on Saturday.

He suspects that the confirmation is the reason that most of Doflamingo's remarks during the drive to New World revolve around information he got from going through Cora-san's phone the night before and _not_ relentlessly teasing Law or Cora-san about their dating status.

Law also confirms that he is never getting in the car with Doflamingo again.

Bepo's in the front seat, shrieking and laughing in utter delight as the man zips through traffic, while Law questions how he came to this moment in his life and wonders if he wants to let go of the door long enough to reach over and hit Cora-san for laughing, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As seen in chapter, more characters are slowly coming into play--some of them will have major roles, while others are mentioned to show connections between characters (i.e., the Warlords all being associates, though not really friends; the Whitebeard crew being mentioned, etc., etc..) and will play more minor roles.
> 
> Tentatively, I would like to go ahead and issue a minor warning that some supernatural elements and various degrees of (canon typical) graphic violence may come into play, which is partially why this chapter is being split into two and why it's later than I said it'd be;;; ~~also because i'm sick rn and drugged up to my eyes on cold medicine~~
> 
> The tags and rating will change as it becomes appropriate, though I'm not sure just _when_ those elements will manifest in full. They will be built towards as chapters progress and will be explained, but I just wanted to give everyone that heads up. We'll see how it goes. Maybe I'll wuss out and just stick to how this was originally supposed to end, we'll see;;; ~~I'm a giant nervous baby ok do not ever doubt that~~
> 
> Anyways, my roommate is making me go to bed because I have to work tonight, it's almost 2pm, and I still have a fever, so hopefully I can sleep some of this off. Next chapter _should_ be up around Wednesday after I get home from work and get a nap in. o/ C &C is always welcome and if you spot typos lemme know~! Love you all!

**Author's Note:**

>  **updated end note** This is obviously not a three parter and I'm not remotely sorry ah-hahahahahah.
> 
> Always remember: C&C is welcome and lemme know if you spot typos!


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